Dear Umar: New York Mayor Mamdani Pens Letter to Umar Khalid
Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist, became mayor of New York City just after midnight on Thursday, marking his name as the first Muslim, Indian-origin mayor of America’s biggest city
Hours after taking oath, New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has written a letter to former JNU student and activist Umar Khalid, who is currently awaiting trial in Tihar Jail on UAPA charges.
Mamdani, a Democratic Socialist, became mayor of New York City just after midnight on Thursday, marking his name as the first Muslim, Indian-origin mayor of America’s biggest city.
“Dear Umar, I think of your words on bitterness often, and the importance of not letting it consume one’s self. It was a pleasure to meet your parents,” Mamdani wrote, ending the note saying “We are all thinking of you.”
Khalid is an accused in a case regarding the conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi riots, and is yet to face trial after being arrested on 13 September 2020.
In 2023,years before his New York City mayoral election victory, Mamdani had read Khalid’s notes at a ‘Howdy, Democracy?!’ event in New York. The address was delivered ahead of PM Modi’s visit to New York in 2023 while Mamdani was a member of the New York State Assembly.
“I’m going to be reading a letter from Umar Khalid, who is a scholar and a former student activist at the Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi…who organised a campaign against lynching and hate. He has been in jail for more than 1,000 days under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act and has yet to face trial, though his bail application has been repeatedly denied. He has also faced an assassination attempt,” Mamdani told the crowd listening to him.