the former licence holders of Peace TV Urdu £200,000 and Peace TV £100,000 for breaking broadcasting rules. In April 2020, the Charity Commission for England and Wales opened a statutory enquiry into the registered charity Islamic Research Foundation, which has funded Peace TV. Indian allegations of promoting terrorism Author Praveen Swami argues that some of Naik's teachings are similar to those of organizations advocating violence, although Naik himself emphatically rejects terrorism. According to Swami, Naik's IRF has proved to be a "magnet" for figures linked to the Lashkar-e-Taiba, while his message has mesmerised violent Islamists, and his works "help make sense of the motivations of Indian recruits to the jihad". In 2008, an Islamic scholar in Lucknow, Shahar Qazi Mufti Abul Irfan Mian Firangi Mahali, issued a fatwa against Naik, claiming that he supported Osama bin Laden, and that his teachings were un-Islamic. However, Naik claims that his speech was being taken out of context, and viewers noted that the speech aired several years before the deadly events of 9/11. Criticism of Indian allegations The allegations of Zakir Naik spreading terrorism have created adverse reactions in India. In January 2020, the Senior Indian Congress leader Digvijaya Singh tweeted a video of the Islamic preacher leveling allegations against PM Modi and HM Amit Shah. "Who disagrees with them 1 – convince them, 2- If he doesn't believe then threaten him 3- If he still does not believe then lure him with money. 4 – If he still does not agree, then defame him by making false accusations," Singh tweeted. Based on the response by Dr. Zakir Naik, Singh claims that the BJP follows the strategy of 'defaming individuals with false allegations'. In a sequence of tweets that included a video of Naik making allegations against PM Modi and HM Amit Shah, Singh claimed that if Modi and Shah do not formally repudiate Naik's accusations, then the allegations are 'correct.' Indian Muslim opposition towards Naik Asjad Raza Qadri, the senior cleric of Bareilly, Shia Muslim cleric Kalbe Jawad Naqvi, and Shahi Imam of Bengal Syed Mohammad Nurur Rahman Barkati are among some of the most powerful Islamic scholars in India who have criticized Naik's interpretation and knowledge of Islam and have described his views as "false", "mischievous", and "misleading". In 2007, reports claimed that Darul Uloom Deoband considered him a self-styled preacher unattached to any of the four orthodox Sunni Islamic schools