Controversial Muslim preacher Dr Zakir Naik is slated to speak at the National Hockey Stadium in Bukit Jalil on Saturday, a day ahead of the Malacca event that has been cancelled by police .
However, inspector-general of police Khalid Abu Bakar has also instructed the cancellation of this event titled 'Is the Quran God's Word'.
"That one is cancelled too," he told Malaysiakini.
Co-organiser of the 'Public Talk Dr Zakir Naik 2016' lecture series, Shahool Hamid Dawood earlier told reporters that they have applied for all necessary permits to hold the event at Bukit Jalil.
"In fact today we also spoke to the police. The police had asked for some clarification," Shahool said when met after a press conference held by 10 NGOs at a hotel in Kuala Lumpur, as joint organisers for the two events.
Organisers are also appealing against the cancellation of the Malacca programme, which is to compare Hinduism and Islam.
Asked about the IGP's latest instruction on the Kuala Lumpur event, Shahool said the organisers would wait for an official written notice before responding.
Khalid this morning said that the forum in Malacca, originally scheduled to be held on April 17 at the Universiti Teknikal Malaysia campus in Malacca, must be cancelled on grounds of potential public unrest and to protect religious sensitivities in the country.
According to the forum's promotional poster, Zakir was originally scheduled to deliver a talk titled 'Similarities between Hinduism and Islam'.
Shahool, however, expressed hope that the forum can proceed on the same topic as it was meant to highlight similarities between Hinduism and Islam.
"If you want to change the topic, then might as well we cancel the whole thing.
"To me that is best topic to speak. It is about similarities and not about diffences of opinion," he said.
Utem vice-chancellor Shahrin Sahib earlier today said that after considering factors on safety and the police order, they have agreed to adhere by the police order and will not host the forum on April 17.
The MIC and several Indian-based NGOs had lodged police reports against Zakir over his allegedly anti-Hindu remarks made in the past.
Zakir's supporters present during the press conference today, however, denied that the Mumbai-born preacher had made derogative remarks or spread hatred through his lectures.
They also urged Zakir's critics to attend his scheduled lectures and seek direct clarification or have a dialogue over any of his past remarks.
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