Who is Mufti Salman Azhari: Cleric in eye of ‘hate speech’ storm, held by Gujarat police repeatedly

ISLAMIC CLERIC Mufti Salman Azhari, who had been granted bail in cases related to allegedly provocative speeches registered by Ahmedabad police, was arrested by the Vadodara Police Thursday night after the Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act (PASA) was invoked against him. He was moved to Vadodara Central Jail amid heavy security measures on account of his many followers who had gathered outside the prison.

Azhari, who studied at the Al-Azhar University in Cairo, Egypt, is a follower of the Sunni Barelvi school of Islam. A Sunni research scholar based in Mumbai, he is the founder of religious institute Jamia Riyazul Jannah and the Al-Amaan Educational and Welfare Trust, according to his X (formerly Twitter) bio. He was earlier reportedly an imam at the Panke Shah Baba Dargah in Mumbai’s Ghatkopar before his popularity grew and he was invited by the Muslim community across the country.

Azhari gained a substantial following, particularly among the youth, due to social media. His speeches on social media platforms started going viral, following which his online presence grew. His PR team constantly posts videos of the religious sermons he delivers across the country.

Even after his arrest, Azhari’s team has regularly been posting updates on the status of the variouscases against him on his social media handles. While he has over 92,000 followers on X, he has 7.83 lakh followers on Instagram.

Azhari was apprehended in Mumbai on February 5 by the Gujarat police in connection with a “hate speech” that he allegedly delivered in Junagadh on January 31. Subsequently, Kutch East police registered a case and arrested him on February 8 for delivering a provocative speech in Samakhiyari village in the Kutch district on January 31.

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