'RSS and Hindutva ideology don't...': US-based Hindu group among 61 organisations protest Mohan Bhagwat's NYC event
&imwidth=600&imheight=450&format=webp&quality=medium "'RSS and Hindutva ideology don't...': US-based Hindu group among 61 organisations protest Mohan Bhagwat's NYC event")
RSS Chief Mohan Bhagwat receives a warm welcome on his arrival in New York. Photograph: (ANI)
One of those organisations is Hindus for Human Rights, whose executive director Sunita Viswanath stated that an open letter was signed by 61 interfaith and secular organisations protesting Saturday’s event.
RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat's event in the US on Saturday (August 29) has sparked a row after New York mayor Zohran Mamdani made remarks against the outfit. Several US-based Hindu organisations have also raised their voice opposing the event, Universal Oneness Celebrations, which is being held at Madison Square Garden.
One of those organisations is Hindus for Human Rights, whose executive director Sunita Viswanath stated that an open letter was signed by 61 interfaith and secular organisations protesting Saturday’s event. She stated that many of the groups' supporters will show up with the message that “the RSS and their Hindutva ideology do not represent us".
Earlier in the week, on Tuesday, a coalition of interfaith and civil rights organisations, among them Hindus for Human Rights, the Indian American Muslim Council, and the Interfaith Centre of New York, gathered outside New York City Hall to press for the event's cancellation. Then on Thursday, the Hindu American Foundation (HAF) put out an advisory ahead of Bhagwat's appearance, calling on Mayor Zohran Mamdani to "uphold his sworn duty" to keep all New Yorkers safe, including those attending the event.
In a post on social media platform X, HAF said, “COMMUNITY ADVISORY ALERT! HAF is issuing this security alert in advance of the Universal Oneness Celebration at Madison Square Garden in New York City. Stay vigilant, remain situationally aware, and keep interactions civil. Ahead of the event, activists targeting Hindu Americans have attempted to disrupt and cancel the celebration. We urge @NYCMayor Zohran Mamdani to uphold his sworn duty to protect all New Yorkers, including event attendees, and guarantee everyone's safety and civil rights.”
Mamdani found the event ‘incredibly troubling’
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In the lead-up to the event, Mamdani had said he found it "incredibly troubling" to witness the growth of a movement in India that he characterised as built on an "exclusionary vision." At a Tuesday press conference, he reiterated his opposition to the gathering, while acknowledging that the city likely lacked the legal authority to block a privately organised event.
“I also stand here as the first Indian American mayor in our city's history. My mother's family is all still in India. 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."
