New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani has written a letter to human rights activist Umar Khalid, who has been languishing in Tihar Jail on UAPA charges in connection with the Delhi violence conspiracy case.
The letter was shared by Umar’s friends on the day Mamdani was sworn in as New York Mayor, the first Muslim to hold the office in history and the youngest in generations.
“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 by saying, “We are all thinking of you.”
Umar Khalid is among more than a dozen human rights defenders, including student activists and Muslim leaders, accused in a case related to the alleged conspiracy behind the 2020 Delhi violence. He is yet to face trial despite being arrested nearly six years ago.
In 2023, two 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 Prime Minister Modi’s visit to New York in 2023, at a time when 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.
The post “We are all thinking of you”: New York Mayor Zohran Mamdani writes to Umar Khalid appeared first on Maktoob media.
