‘We are all thinking of you’: New York Mayor sends handwritten note to jailed activist Umar Khalid

New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has sent a handwritten note of solidarity to jailed activist Umar Khalid, a gesture that has drawn fresh international attention to Khalid’s continued incarceration in India.

The note was handed over to Khalid’s parents during their visit to the United States in December 2025. Addressed directly to Khalid, Mamdani wrote: “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.”

A photograph of the note was shared on X on January 1, by Khalid’s partner, Banojyotsna Lahiri, coinciding with the day Mamdani was sworn in as New York City mayor.

Lahiri said Khalid’s parents, Sahiba Khanam and Syed Qasim Rasool Ilyas, were in the US to visit their daughter ahead of a family wedding and met Mamdani during the trip. “They spent quite some time with him. That’s when he wrote this note,” she said.

Khalid has been in jail since 2020 after being charged under the stringent Unlawful Activities (Prevention) Act in connection with the Delhi riots cases. He was granted interim bail in December to attend his sister’s wedding but returned to jail after the bail period ended. Lahiri said Khalid remained at home throughout the interim bail, adhering strictly to court-imposed conditions and spending time with family.

Mamdani has previously spoken publicly about Khalid’s imprisonment. In 2023, at an event in New York, he read out excerpts from a letter written by Khalid reflecting on the need to resist bitterness despite prolonged incarceration.

The renewed spotlight comes amid growing concern in the US over the length of pre-trial detention in cases linked to the 2020 Delhi riots. US Congressman James P McGovern has written to India’s ambassador to Washington, Vinay Mohan Kwatra, raising alarm over what he described as extended detention without trial.

In his letter, McGovern referred specifically to Khalid, noting that human rights groups and legal experts have questioned both the investigation and the legal process.

He said independent inquiries by rights organisations “did not find evidence” linking Khalid to terrorist activity and cited India’s obligations under the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights, including the right to timely trials and the presumption of innocence.