NYC Mayor Zohran Mamdani opposes Mohan Bhagwat's Madison Square Garden event

Newyork,UPDATED: Aug 26, 2026 14:08 IST

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has said he does not support the planned Madison Square Garden event featuring RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat, who is due to address the Indian diaspora on August 29. At the same time, he said he was unsure whether the city had any authority to stop what he described as a private event.

The planned appearance, expected to draw around 5,000 people, has been criticised by several interfaith and civil rights groups. Bhagwat arrived in the US on Tuesday as part of the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh's centenary-year global outreach programme, which also includes visits to Canada and the UK.

Responding to a question at a press conference on Tuesday on whether the Madison Square Garden event should be cancelled, Mamdani said, "I don't support the rally, but I don't know if the city has any jurisdiction on cancelling a private event." The Indian-origin mayor, who described himself as the first Indian-American mayor in New York City's history, said his mother's family is still in India.

Mamdani said the vision of India that he was taught by his family and grew up with was that of "a pluralistic society" and "a secular republic" that believed in the belonging of each and every person from India. He said it had been "incredibly troubling" to see the rise of a movement based on an "exclusionary vision". He added that he was in "deep opposition" to it both as an Indian-American and as mayor of a city that believes deeply in the belonging of every person, regardless of their colour, creed, religion, faith or where they are from.

Several organisations, including Hindus for Human Rights, the Indian American Muslim Council and the Interfaith Centre of New York, have opposed Bhagwat's appearance at the venue and urged Madison Square Garden to cancel the event. Bhagwat is being hosted in the US by AHEAD Forum, a public policy and research trust, under the banner Universal Oneness Celebration. In a social media post, the group said the August 29 programme "carries a timeless and universal message: The world is one family", and called on people to look beyond "artificial divisions and differences". Overall, the event has drawn both support from its organisers and opposition from rights groups, while the city's mayor has made clear his disagreement with it but questioned whether the administration can intervene.

With PTI Inputs

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