Mamdani opposes Bhagwat's Madison Square Garden event, cites limits on city powers

Newyork,UPDATED: Aug 26, 2026 00:26 IST

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani on Tuesday said he does not support the planned Madison Square Garden event at which RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat is due to address members of the Indian diaspora. However, he said the city may not have the authority to cancel what he described as a private event scheduled for August 29.

Bhagwat arrived in the US earlier in the day as part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's centenary-year global outreach programme. During his stay in New York, he is expected to take part in the Universal Oneness programme and address a gathering of around 5,000 people at the iconic venue on Saturday.

Responding to a question at a press conference about the RSS, the planned event at Madison Square Garden and the protests against it, Mamdani said, "I don't support the rally, but I don't know if the city has any jurisdiction on cancelling a private event." He was asked whether the event should be cancelled.

"I also stand here as the first Indian-American Mayor in our city's history, and my mother's family is all still in India," Mamdani said.

He said the vision of India he had been taught by his family, and the one he grew up knowing, was that of "a pluralistic society, of a secular republic that believed in the belonging of each and every person who was from India".

"And it has been incredibly troubling to see the rise of a movement that is predicated on an exclusionary vision of any country, frankly, and so it is one that I find myself in deep opposition to, not only as an Indian-American but also as the Mayor of a city that believes deeply in the belonging of each and every person, no matter their colour, their creed, their religion, their faith, wherever they're from," Mamdani said.

Several interfaith and civil rights organisations held a press conference outside New York City Hall, opposing Bhagwat's appearance at Madison Square Garden and urging the venue to cancel the event. The groups included Hindus for Human Rights, the Indian American Muslim Council and the Interfaith Centre of New York, among others.

The Universal Oneness Celebration, organised by AHEAD Forum, which is hosting Bhagwat, said in a social media post that the RSS chief would attend the event in New York on August 29. "The event carries a timeless and universal message: 'The world is one family'. It calls upon us to look beyond artificial divisions and differences, recognise the bonds that unite humanity, and embrace a spirit of mutual respect, harmony, and oneness," the post said.

Bhagwat's US visit is part of a wider tour that also includes Canada and the UK under the Sangh's centenary-year global outreach programme, with his New York events drawing both support and protests ahead of the Madison Square Garden gathering.

With PTI Inputs

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