Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh chief Mohan Bhagwat is set to speak at an event in New York that has made to headlines after NYC mayor Zohran Mamdani’s remarks over the RSS .
The event will have a cultural program that includes performances, music, and artistic expressions, according to the event website. “Through performance and creative expression, attendees will experience — not merely hear — what it means to hold all of creation as one,” it said. Ahead of the event, New York City mayor Zohran Mamdani said that it was “incredibly troubling” to see the rise of a movement in India that was based on what he called an “exclusionary vision”.
The organisation later issued a statement saying, “AHEAD believes the suspension may have occurred in error. Earlier reporting noted: The programme is expected to draw around 5,000 Indian Americans as part of the RSS’s global outreach during its centenary year.
Earlier reporting noted: Earlier this week, New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he did not support the planned event, while acknowledging that his office may not have the authority to cancel a private gathering.
Earlier reporting noted: RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat’s US event organiser AHEAD’s X account suspended ahead of programme RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat’s event organiser’s X account has been suspended two days before the Madison Square Garden programme. Speaking at a press conference on Tuesday, Mamdani stressed his opposition to the rally but pointed out that the city’s government likely did not have the jurisdiction to cancel a private event.
“It has been incredibly troubling to see the rise of a movement that is predicated on an exclusionary vision of any country, frankly. “Mohan Bhagwat does not represent Hindus.
So it is one that I find myself in deep opposition to,” he said. He leads an extremist Hindu nationalist movement that has fuelled violence, exclusion and fear for minority communities,” said Sravya Tadepalli, Deputy Executive Director of Hindus for Human Rights. “If you’re attending: Be civil, respect everyone’s right to assemble, protest, and express their views,” the HAF said.
A US-based advocacy group of Hindu-Americans has issued a community alert for those attending Bhagwat’s New York event, urging them to avoid confrontation with activists opposing the programme on Saturday.
