Exclusive: Umar Khalid's Father Recalls Meeting Zohran Mamdani In US

Days before jailed activist Umar Khalid was to come out on a 14-day bail for his sister's wedding, his father Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas met then New York Mayor-elect Zohran Mamdani, who wrote a letter to the former JNU student, thanking him for raising common people's issues.

Ilyas told NDTV that he met Mamdani on December 9 for around 25 minutes, a meeting he had sought to thank the Democrat for reading Khalid's jail diary in 2023. "He said he always thinks about Umar's incarceration and that he must get bail now," the activist's father recounted.

AIMPLB spokesperson Ilyas also said that Mamdani drew parallels between himself and Khalid for raising the common people's issues. It was during this meeting that the New York City Mayor also wrote a letter to Khalid. “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,” said the note signed by Mamdani.

When Mamdani asked what he could do in this matter, Khalid's father replied, "Just pray." Ilyas told IANS that he was present during the recent arguments in the Supreme Court and hoped that something positive would unfold soon.

Mamdani's letter stirred controversy with BJP leader Gaurav Bhatia calling the case against Khalid an internal matter. 

Khalid has been lodged in jail for nearly five years in connection with the February 2020 Delhi riots, in which 53 people were killed. He was granted bail from December 16 till 29 to attend his sister's wedding. 

US Representatives Jim McGovern and Jamie Raskin and six other lawmakers wrote to the Indian Ambassador to the US Vinay Kwatra, expressing concern regarding the "prolonged pre-trial detention of individuals charged in connection with the February 2020 violence in Delhi,” including Khalid. 

The lawmakers claimed that human rights organisations, legal experts and global media have raised questions about the fairness of the investigation and legal process related to Khalid's detention.