New Delhi, August 27: Ahead of RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s rally in New York City this week, Mayor Zohran Mamdani said it was “incredibly troubling” to see the rise of a movement in India that, in his view, was based on an “exclusionary vision”. Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Mamdani said he opposed the rally but noted that the city government likely did not have the jurisdiction to cancel a private event.
“I also stand here as the first Indian American mayor in our city’s history,” Mamdani said, adding that his mother’s family still lives in India.He said the India he grew up learning about from his family was a “pluralistic society” and a “secular republic” that believed every person from India belonged.
“It has been incredibly troubling to see the rise of a movement that is predicated on an exclusionary vision of any country, frankly. So it is one that I find myself in deep opposition to,” he said. Mamdani added stressed that New York was a city that belonged to people of every colour and faith.
