Beer, No. Zakir, Yes: Qatar's hypocricy exposed as Naik's old video calling playing football 'haram' goes viral

New Delhi: An old video of Zakir Naik calling playing football ‘haram’ in Islam has gone viral on social media. In the old viral video of Naik, he can be heard saying, “Football as a profession is haram in Islam.”

Qatar has invited controversial Islamic preacher Zakir Naik, who is banned in India, to give sermons during the sporting event. “Preacher Sheikh Zakir Naik is present in Qatar during the World Cup and will give many religious lectures throughout the tournament,” tweeted Faisal Alhajri, a presenter at the Qatari state-owned sports channel Alkass. Who is Zakir Naik? An Indian Islamic televangelist and preacher, Zakir Naik is a non-Arabic public orator and proponent of the hardline Salafi school of thought in Sunni Islam. He is the founder and president of the Islamic Research Foundation (IRF) and the Peace TV Network. While he is known for his radical sermons, he also holds a degree in medicine. Naik has been accused of giving hate speeches and has been banned in India. His supporters dub him an expert on comparative religion. The radical evangelist became popular in the 1990s for his attempts to convert people to Islam through IRF, his Mumbai-based organisation. In the early 2000s, his videos grabbed attention as they tried to establish Islam as a religion superior to others, according to a report in India Today. As he became famous, Naik went on the launch Peace TV English, which was based in Dubai, and other versions in Urdu and Bangla. However, they have been banned in several countries like India, Canada, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, and the United Kingdom for allegedly spreading hate speech. While his YouTube channel is restricted in India, his Facebook page which is verified, has 22.8 million followers from across the world. Read all the Latest News , Trending News ,  Cricket News , Bollywood News , India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook , Twitter and Instagram .