Christian Radio Presenter Disciplined and Suspended

Reverend Mahboob Masih presented a weekly Christian radio show on the Glasgow radio station AWAZ FM. With a live 'talk show' format, the Saturday morning programme sought to respond to questions from listeners.

Awaz FM operates under a Community Radio licence issued to serve the Asian (Indian sub continent) population of Glasgow, delivering entertainment, community information, local, national and international news broadcasting in Urdu, Punjabi, Hindi and English. The station claims to be the voice of Glasgow’s ethnic communities and their respective faiths.

Following claims by Muslim academic Dr. Zakir Naik, well known in the Asian community for his critical comments about Christianity, that Jesus was not the only person who was ‘the way, the truth and the life’ and that every "prophet" was in their own way the way, the truth and the life, Rev. Masih's programme received a number of calls asking questions about Dr Naik’s comments.

Mahboob Masih answered these questions in moderate and temporate terms, including quoting the claims of Jesus as stated in The Bible.

Despite Rev Masih's factual and honest answers to these questions, some Muslim listeners, complained the radio station.

Management at Awaz FM asked Rev Masih to offer an apology for any offence which had been caused. But after reading out a prepared apology on air, as he had been requested, the station sought to find further fault with Mahboob Masih and removed him from the rado show.

Supported by the Christian Legal Centre, Reverend Masih continues to seek answers from the radio station as to the way he has been treated and papers have been filed at the Employment Tribunal.

A formal complaint will will also be made to Ofcom that AWAZ FM is breaching the terms of its broadcasting licence.



Mahboob Masih was born in the industrial city of Faisalabad, Pakistan and raised by Christian parents in a Presbyterian Church.

After receiving his first degree in English, Journalism and Literature from the University Of Punjab, Pakistan, he worked as a language teacher in a missionary language school teaching foreign missionaries local languages enabling them to be more effective in their missionary work.

Rev Masih was dedicated to Christian ministry in his childhood and entered into full time ministry when he personally felt a strong sense of calling. He then went to Gujranwala Theological Seminary where he graduated Master of Divinity.

After his ordination he worked briefly as a minister, preaching and teaching, then taking the position of national youth co-ordinator of the Pakistani church.

In March 2000 Mahboob came to Scotland and worked as a community worker with Queen’s Park Baptist Church, at the same time working towards his M.Th (Master of Theology) degree in Biblical Interpretation from International Christian College, Glasgow.

After an attachment to Croftfoot Parish Church, Rev Masih received a call to the West Kirk, East Kilbride, where he was inducted on 1st May 2008.

• See also Apology Demanded from TV Presenter

Apology Demanded from TV Presenter

Venus TV is a satellite television station focused primarily on British Asians in the UK and Europe with the aim of combining the best Asian cultures and heritage and its connection to Asian generations in the UK.

Ashar Mall, a Pakistani Christian who who hosts a regular weekly program on Venus TV, has been asked to apologise over hosting a program on Venus TV on October 3 in which Australian based Pakistani Christian evangelist, Daniel Scott, attempted to address Muslim misconceptions about the biblical concepts of atonement, redemption and salvation.

Mr. Scott in the past was taken to court by Australian Muslims on charges of "vilification of Islam", and was found not guilty by the highest court in Australia.

Ahar Mall reported that in recent weeks his program had come under fire from Muslims as they started asking aggressive questions about the validity of the Bible, the deity of Christ and the nature of God in Christianity.

In the October 3rd programme Daniel Scott very academically dealt with such subjects without being aggressive or insulting to the religion of Islam.

However, some leaders within the Muslim community are complaining about the programmi, claiming that it contained wrong information about their religion and was anti-Islam propaganda.

In Pakistan, the Urdu language newspaper "Daily Jang" contacted community leaders and Muslim scholars in the UK and quoted them as saying that attempts to accuse the person of Prophet Muhammad, and distorting his sayings posed grave dangers to the peaceful environment of European society.

Mr. Qazi Abdul Aziz Chishti, Chief of the Central Party of Ahle-Sunat of Britain and Europe, was quoted as saying: "We outrightly condemn it. A meeting of the party would soon be convened and we would take legal action against it."

Imam Qasim, a prayer leader of the Akhir Foundation, told the Daily Jang that he disagreed with the Christian concept of salvation and demanded that "Christians should call Prophet Muhammad's name with the same degree of respect which is attached by the Muslims when they speak about Jesus Christ".

Anwar Khokhar, a leader of Tehrik-e-Insaf Britain, was quoted as having urged Muslims to write letters to register their protest with the TV channel and "concerned authority".

• See also Christian Radio Presenter Disciplined and Suspended