LONDON (RNS) The British Broadcasting Corp., in a move almost certain to trigger controversy, has appointed a Muslim television executive to head its religious programming even though Britain remains overwhelmingly Christian.

Aaqil Ahmed becomes the first Muslim named to the post at the country’s taxpayer-funded radio and television network.

It is only the second time in the organization’s 87-year history that a non-Christian has held the position. The other was Allan Bookbinder, an agnostic, who filled the job for five years starting in 2001.

Ahmed had won praises at his previous job at the rival Channel 4 network, where he was in charge of commissioning programs examining both Christianity and Islam.

But his appointment to the post — viewed in some quarters as among the most influential religious positions in the country — comes in the wake of complaints against the BBC by both the Church of England’s Archbishop of Canterbury, Rowan Williams, and his No. 2 prelate, Archbishop of York John Sentamu.

Both Williams and Sentamu have taken the network to task for what they contend as its indifference, and sometimes open hostility, to Christianity.

In an official statement, however, the Church of England insisted, “we will judge the new man by his output rather than his label.”

Official figures compiled earlier this year put Britain’s Muslim population at 2.4 million, in a nation with a total population that just weeks ago passed 60 million.

Christina Rees, a member of the Church of England’s Archbishops’ Council, described Ahmed as “a respected professional” with a solid record of achievement.

But she added that “it is important that the Christian faith continues to receive coverage (from the BBC) that accurately reflects the significance in the lives of most people who live in Britain, the overwhelming majority of whom regard themselves as Christian.”