Search Results

{{searchSuggestion.title}}
{{searchSuggestion.date}}

No Result Found.

FACT CHECK: Did Mahesh Bhatt meet Islamic preacher Zakir Naik in Malaysia?

  • Share

Summary

The claim that Mahesh Bhatt met fugitive Islamic preacher Zakir Naik in Malaysia is false and the picture shared with this claim is also misleading as it is an old picture from 2010. 

Recently, an image of fugitive Islamic Preacher Zakir Nakir and Bollywood filmmaker Mahesh Bhat was widely circulated on social media with a claim that Mahesh Bhatt went to Malaysia to meet that jihadi criminal Zakir Naik.

A twitter user named NationFirst #Saffron shared the picture with a caption, "India's fugitive jihadi criminal Zakir Naik, who has taken refuge in the Islamic country of Malaysia. Mahesh Bhatt went to Malaysia to meet that jihadi criminal Zakir Naik."

At the time of writing this article, this tweet was reshared more than 250 times. 

The same picture was shared on Facebook by a user named Anand Gandhi and also on a page name 'We support Narendra Modi", with the same caption.

Zakir Naik presently lives in exile in Malaysia and is unwelcome in several countries for his views, particularly after his declared support for Al Qaeda and Osama bin Laden. One of the bombers in the Dhaka terror attack of July 2016 told Bangladeshi investigators that he was influenced by his preaching through his YouTube channel.

The truth behind the claim 

In our investigation, we found this claim to be false. With the help of reverse image search, we found some pictures of Zakir Naik and Mahesh Bhat which led us to the conclusion that the viral picture is at least 10 years old. 

The viral picture was taken in 2010 when Mahesh Bhat joined Zakir Naik along with his lawyer Majid Menon in a conference in protest against the UK government denying a visa to Naik. We found an image on Getty images, that was uploaded on 22 June 2010 with a caption, "Islamic preacher Dr. Zakir Naik, filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt and advocate Majid Menon at Press Club to protest against the UK government denying a visa to Naik. (Photo by Vijayanand Gupta/Hindustan Times via Getty Images)".

A comparison between this image and the one viral on social media makes it clear that both the images were captured on the same day, as all of them are wearing the same clothes in both the pictures. 

BBC also published a report on 22 June 2010 about the press conference condemning the ban on Naik. The report also mentions, "He has won support for his campaign against the exclusion order from Bollywood filmmaker Mahesh Bhatt, who praised him for "locking horns with the might of the British empire".

Zakir Naik can be seen wearing the same shirt in the image used in the BBC report, and Mahesh Bhatt can also be spotted in the background. 

We also did not find any report of Mahesh Bhatt meeting Zakir Naik in Malaysia. 

In conclusion, the claim that Mahesh Bhatt met fugitive Islamic preacher Zakir Naik in Malaysia is false and the picture shared with this claim is also misleading as it is an old picture from 2010. 

  • Share

Note: You can reach out to us at support[at]facthunt.co.in if you find any issue with our articles.


COMMENTS

{{comment.user.fname}} {{comment.user.lname}}, {{comment.date}}

{{urlify(comment.comment)}}.

LEAVE A COMMENT

Please Login or signup to share your views on this article

Support Fact Hunt

YOU MAY ALSO LIKE

Culprits

POPULAR POSTS

All you need to know about opposition leaders state-sponsored hacking claim
by FactHunt Admin 2023-11-01 07:02:25
No, Passengers without Burqas Were Not Prevented From Boarding A Bus In Kerala
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-31 13:27:53
List of 17 Nepalis shared as Indians kidnapped by Hamas
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-18 12:54:13
Fact Check: Was an Afghanistan Cricket team supporter beaten by Indians during world cup?
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-13 14:59:58
Debunking the Claim: US Navy Carrying F-16 Fighter Jets to Israel
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-12 18:21:17
Daughter Nandana denies news of death of her father Amartya Sen
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-10 19:47:46
Edited Press Release shared on social media to falsely claim that US sends $8Bn in aid to Israel
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-10 07:02:46
Viral Video From Azerbaijan Falsely Shared As Israeli Generals Detained by Hamas Fighter
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-10 05:04:02
Uday Kotak Calls Out Impostor LinkedIn Account Promoting Crypto currencies
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-07 15:40:48
Debunking the Myth: Giant Octopus Attacking a Car in Qatar
by FactHunt Admin 2023-10-06 19:06:05
Image of a train decorated with Flowers for Onam is AI generated
by FactHunt Admin 2023-08-25 19:42:05
Debunking the Myth: Tea or Coffee Without Brushing Doesn't Cause Cavities
by FactHunt Admin 2023-09-10 19:57:56
Debunking the Claim that SBI Will Deduct Rs 57.5 After 40 Withdrawals a Year
by FactHunt Admin 2023-08-12 18:28:15
Jamtara Scam Case Study: How to Stay Safe in the Face of Online Frauds
by FactHunt Admin 2023-06-07 20:36:37
Navigating the NFT World: Common Scams in the NFT Industry
by FactHunt Admin 2023-05-25 20:24:31
Understanding Cryptocurrency and the Prevalence of Scams in the Crypto Industry
by FactHunt Admin 2023-05-02 20:05:39
Debunking Online Scams: How to Recognize and Avoid Internet Fraud
by FactHunt Admin 2023-04-07 19:53:38
Fact Check: Doctored photo of BJP flag hoisting viral as a sign of "lotus blooming" in Tamil Nadu
by Aniket Datta 2022-06-08 12:50:03
Debunking the Money Received Scam on UPI payment apps like Google Pay
by FactHunt Admin 2022-12-20 19:26:40
Fact Check: Did Sourav Ganguly actually resign as the BCCI President? Rumours abound;
by Aniket Datta 2022-06-01 18:35:03

Mobile App

Available for Android

NEWSLETTER

Subscribe to our newsletter to get notification about new fact checks, feature updates, etc..