Mufti Salman Azhari

Mufti Salman Azhari is an Indian Islamic research scholar and preacher based in Mumbai. ¹ He completed his studies at Al-Azhar University in Cairo. ² His channel's own summary describes him as a "Sunni Islamic Research Scholar" with a degree from Jamia Al-Azhar, Egypt. ³

He is the founder of Jamia Riazul Jannah, the Al-Aman Education and Welfare Trust and Darul Aman. ² He is also associated with the Al-Amaan Foundation. ²

This section reports allegations and court outcomes as the sources give them. It is not a verdict by the museum.

On the night of 31 January 2024 he delivered a speech at an event on an open ground near the 'B' division police station in Junagadh, Gujarat. ¹ After a video of the speech went viral, an FIR was registered against him and local organisers Mohammad Yousuf Malek and Azim Habib Odedara under Indian Penal Code sections 153B (promoting enmity between different religious groups) and 505(2) (making statements conducive to public mischief). ¹ Officials said the organisers had taken permission for a gathering to speak about religion and de-addiction awareness, but that he allegedly delivered an inflammatory speech. ¹

Gujarat Police traced him to Mumbai and arrested him on 4 February 2024 with the help of the Gujarat Anti-Terrorist Squad, securing a transit remand from a Mumbai court to bring him to Junagadh. ¹ Hundreds of his supporters gathered outside Ghatkopar police station in Mumbai demanding his immediate release, and police resorted to a mild lathicharge. ¹

A detention order under the Gujarat Prevention of Anti-Social Activities Act (PASA) was executed on 22 February 2024, and he was held in Vadodara Central Jail. ⁴ The Gujarat High Court validated the detention, holding that his public speeches circulated on social media were sufficient to promote enmity between groups and were prejudicial to harmony and national integration. ⁴ On 18 October 2024 the Supreme Court of India set that order aside, holding that "there is nothing to suggest that the speeches delivered by the appellant are in any manner disturbing the public order", and directed his release. ⁴

The SportsGrail biography also reports an earlier episode, that in 2018 he was detained over comments about Hindus at a lecture in Karnataka and released on bond after a few days; that report is single-sourced and is recorded here as reported. ²

His official YouTube channel, @MuftiSalmanAzhariOfficial, counted 812,000 subscribers, 79,537,553 total views and 544 videos as of 5 November 2026 — dated platform figures, not museum-verified facts. ⁵ The channel was created on 5 February 2014, and its most-viewed upload is a Shab-e-Meraj mehfil recording at 3.49 million views. ⁵

Low-authority profiles conflict on his birth date and birthplace — 21 December 1985 in Karnataka in one, 1 January 1986 in Mumbai or Hubli in others — so this museum records no birth date for him. ²

• The SportsGrail, "Who Is Mufti Salman Azhari…", 5 February 2024. ²
• Press Trust of India via LatestLY, "Gujarat Police Arrest Islamic Preacher from Mumbai in Hate Speech Case", 5 February 2024. ¹
• Live Law, "Supreme Court Quashes Detention Of Maulana Mufti Salman Azhari In Gujarat", 18 October 2024. ⁴
• ThoughtLeaders, "Mufti Salman Azhari YouTube stats, analytics, and sponsorship insights", as read on 5 November 2026. ³
• vidIQ, "Mufti Salman Azhari YouTube Stats", updated 5 November 2026. ⁵