New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has publicly opposed an upcoming Madison Square Garden event featuring Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat, describing the movement’s vision as exclusionary while acknowledging that the city may not have the authority to cancel a privately organized gathering.
“I don’t support the rally, but I don’t know if the city has any jurisdiction on cancelling a private event,” Mamdani said at a news conference Tuesday when asked whether the city should intervene.
The event, titled the “Universal Oneness Celebration,” is scheduled for Saturday, August 29, at Madison Square Garden, with Bhagwat delivering the keynote address. Organized by the American Hindus for Engagement and Dialogue (AHEAD) Forum, the gathering is being held during the RSS’s centenary year and is expected to draw thousands of members of the Indian-American community.
Mamdani framed his opposition to the event in deeply personal terms, invoking his own family ties to India.
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“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,” he said. “The vision of India that I was taught by my family and the one that I grew up being very familiar with was of a pluralistic society, of a secular republic that believed in the belonging of each and every person who was from India.”
He added that it was “incredibly troubling” to see the rise of a movement “predicated on an exclusionary vision of any country,” saying he found himself “in deep opposition” to such a movement, both as an Indian-American and as mayor of New York.
Mamdani drew a parallel between the India he said he was raised to value and New York City’s commitment to religious and cultural diversity.
He said the city “believes deeply in the belonging of each and every person,” regardless of their color, creed, religion, faith or country of origin.
Bhagwat’s appearance has also drawn opposition from civil rights, interfaith and community groups in the United States. Organizations including Hindus for Human Rights (HfHR), the Indian American Muslim Council (IAMC) and the Interfaith Center of New York (ICNY) have joined a campaign urging Madison Square Garden to cancel the event.
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The campaign has focused pressure on the privately operated venue as Mamdani has questioned whether the city has jurisdiction to prevent the gathering from taking place. Separately, ahead of Bhagwat’s arrival, more than 1,000 people wrote to Secretary of State Marco Rubio urging the State Department to deny or revoke his visa, according to the IAMC.
Bhagwat arrived in New York Tuesday as part of a three-country outreach tour that also includes Canada and the United Kingdom. His August 29 appearance comes as the RSS marks its centenary and seeks to engage with Indian diaspora communities abroad.
Organizers describe the event as a celebration of Raksha Bandhan centered on unity, civic responsibility and global harmony. Its theme, “Vasudhaiva Kutumbakam,” translates as “The World Is One Family.” More than 135 Hindu American organizations are participating, with the program expected to include faith-based speakers and cultural performances.