India on Zohran Mamdani's letter to Umar Khalid: 'Personal prejudices doesn't behove...'

Zohran Mamdani

• India urges foreign officials not to comment on its judicial processes
• MEA stresses public representatives should respect judiciary independence
• Controversy follows NYC Mayor Mamdani's note to jailed activist Umar Khalid

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India responded to remarks linked to New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani, saying elected officials abroad should avoid commenting on judicial processes in other democracies. The response followed a personal note Mamdani wrote to jailed activist Umar Khalid, which later surfaced publicly.

At a media briefing on Friday, Minister of External Affairs (MEA) spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said public office carries responsibilities that include restraint. “We expect public representatives to be respectful of the independence of the judiciary in other democracies. Expressing personal prejudices does not behove those in office. Instead of such comments, it would be better to focus on the responsibilities entrusted to them,” he said.

The controversy arose after a photograph of Mamdani’s handwritten message was posted on X by Khalid’s friend Banojyotsna Lahiri on Thursday, coinciding with Mamdani’s ceremonial swearing-in as mayor. In the note, Mamdani addressed Khalid directly: “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."

According to media reports, the note was passed on to Khalid’s parents when Mamdani met them during a visit to the United States in December 2025. Lahiri told The Hindustan Times that Sahiba Khanam and Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas had travelled to the US for a family wedding and to meet another daughter who lives there.

The backdrop to the exchange is a recent ruling by the Supreme Court of India. On January 5, a bench of Justices Aravind Kumar and NV Anjaria declined bail to Khalid and Sharjeel Imam in the alleged 2020 Delhi riots conspiracy, citing a prima facie case under the Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act and observing that trial delays cannot be treated as a “trump card.”

At the same time, the court granted bail to other accused in the case -- Gulfisha Fatima, Meeran Haider, Shifa Ur Rehman, Mohd. Saleem Khan and Shadab Ahmad -- who, like Khalid and Imam, face charges under the UAPA and provisions of the IPC for alleged roles in the riots.