Zohran Mamdani, New York's Indian-origin mayoral candidate, has vowed not to be 'intimidated' by United States President Donald Trump, who has threatened to have him arrested over his pledge to block the Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) operations in the city.
In a statement posted on X, Mamdani accused Trump of abusing presidential power to silence political opposition.
"The President of the United States just threatened to have me arrested, stripped of my citizenship, put in a detention camp and deported. Not because I have broken any law but because I will refuse to let ICE terrorise our city," Mamdani said.
"His statements don't just represent an attack on our democracy but an attempt to send a message to every New Yorker who refuses to hide in the shadow: if you speak up, they will come for you. We will not accept this intimidation," the Democrat added.
Mamdani, a rising star of American socialism and the son of acclaimed Indian filmmaker Mira Nair, officially became the Democratic nominee for New York City mayor on Tuesday after defeating former Governor Andrew Cuomo in the primary. He will now face the general election in November.
Following his confirmation as the party's candidate, Trump intensified his criticism, denouncing Mamdani as a 'lunatic' and a 'communist' and openly questioning the legality of his citizenship. Mamdani immigrated to the United States from Uganda in 1998 when he was seven years old.
Speaking to reporters, Trump said Mamdani's vow to block ICE from arresting undocumented immigrants could result in legal action. "Well, then we will have to arrest him. We don't need a Communist in this country, but if we have one, I am going to be watching over him very carefully on behalf of the nation," the US President had said.
"A lot of people are saying he (Mamdani) is here illegally. You know we are going to look over everything. And ideally, he's going to turn out to be much less than a communist but right now he's a communist. That's not a socialist," Trump added.
Meanwhile, the White House has signalled a possible investigation into Mamdani's citizenship status. Responding to Republican Congressman Andy Ogles's demand that Mamdani's citizenship be revoked, White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt accused him of hiding 'terrorist' sympathies during his naturalisation process.
Source: India Today
