New York: Zohran Mamdani, a New York mayoral candidate, was accused of using communal rhetoric by leaders of the Indian diaspora.
Jaspreet Singh, a leader of the Sikh community in New York, accused Mamdani of pitting Muslims and Hindus against each other, while another Indian-origin politician, Jennifer Rajkumar, slammed him for using "divisive rhetoric" in the mayoral elections when crime and housing crises were the key issues.
Zohran Mamdani is the son of filmmaker Mira Nair and was born and raised in Kampala, Uganda, before moving to New York City with his family at the age of seven. His father, Mahmood Mamdani, a Ugandan, has roots in Gujarat.
Some of the Indian-origin leaders started accusing Mamdani of using communal rhetoric after he condemned Prime Minister Narendra Modi and compared him with Israeli PM Benjamin Netanyahu over the 2002 Gujarat riots, according to the New York Post.
The latest controversy was triggered after a May 15 event, in which the 33-year-old Mamdani also said people were "shocked" when he revealed he was a Gujarati Muslim.
Jennifer Rajkumar slammed Mamdani and said divisive politics has no place in the New York mayoral poll, especially when there were pressing local issues to be addressed.
"At a time when New Yorkers are struggling with real issues like rising crime, a housing crisis, and growing hate, we cannot afford to be distracted by extreme, divisive language about foreign leaders," The New York Post quoted Rajkumar as saying.
"Hinduism is a faith of peace, nonviolence, and interfaith harmony. Hindu voters want our leaders to build bridges, not burn them. We must reject hate, whether it comes from the far left or the far right. Our city deserves leaders who unite, not provoke, one who build coalitions, not headlines," Rajkumar added.
