Mamdani's note for Khalid: India won't tolerate any interference in its internal matters, says BJP

The BJP on Friday (January 2, 2025) accused New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani of "interfering" in India's internal matter by writing a note on jailed activist Umar Khalid and asserted that India will not tolerate any such effort.

Questioning Mr. Mamdani's locus standi of commenting on India's internal matters, BJP national spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia also cautioned the New York City Mayor against such efforts, asserting, "If India's sovereignty is challenged, 140-crore Indians will stand united under the Prime Minister Narendra Modi's leadership."

People of India have "complete faith" in the country's judiciary, he added.

This came after Mr. Mamdani wrote a note for Mr. Khalid, recalling his words on "bitterness" and the importance of not letting it consume one's self.

The note was posted on X by Mr. Khalid's partner, Banojyotsna Lahiri. "When prisons try to isolate, words travel. Zohran Mamdani writes to Umar Khalid," the caption accompanying the note said.

"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. We are all thinking of you," the handwritten note signed by Mr. Mamdani said.

Reacting sharply, Mr. Bhatia charged, "If anybody comes out in support of any accused and interferes in India's internal matters, the country will not tolerate it."

"Who is this outsider to raise questions on our democracy and judiciary, and that too coming in support of a person who wants to break India? This is not fair," the BJP spokesperson said at a press conference at the party headquarters here, when asked about Mamdani's note.

Mr. Khalid and a few others have been booked under the stringent anti-terror law, Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act, (UAPA) 1967, and provisions of the IPC for allegedly being the "masterminds" of the February 2020 Delhi riots, which left 53 people dead and more than 700 injured.

Getting bail under the UAPA is difficult for those booked under this law as the onus to show that the case is false lies on the accused.