Tableau At New York’s India Day Parade Sparks Row As US Organisations Call It ‘Anti-Muslim’

A controversy has erupted over a carnival float featuring Ayodhya Ram temple that is planned for an upcoming India Day Parade in New York City. Several groups called it anti-Muslim and said it should be removed from the event. According to news agency Reuters, the float depicts a temple to the Hindu god Lord Ram, which was consecrated earlier this year in Ayodhya. 

Some U.S.-based organisations have written a letter to New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul, calling the float “anti-Muslim” and claiming that it glorified the takedown of the mosque. Among the groups who signed the letter were the Council on American Islamic Relations, the Indian American Muslim Council, and Hindus for Human Rights.

“This float’s presence represents these groups’ desire to conflate Hindu nationalist ideology with Indian identity, but India is a secular country,” the letter said, as quoted by Reuters. The float has been organised by the Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America. It said that it represents a Hindu place of worship and aims to glorify a deity seen as an important part of Indian and Hindu identity.

The Hindu American Foundation stated that it was an exercise of free speech. The Federation of Indian Associations, which runs Sunday’s event, said the parade represents the cultural diversity of India and will feature floats from various communities.

Speaking at a press conference earlier this week, Adams said, “There’s no room for hate,” as quoted by Reuters. “If there is a float or a person in the parade that’s promoting hate, they should not,” he said.

Later, Adams’ office told the Associated Press that the U.S. Constitution’s First Amendment right to free speech prevents the city from denying a permit or requiring that a float or parade’s message be changed simply because it does not agree with the content.

Before the Supreme Court’s 2019 order gave clearance for the construction of the Ram Temple, the site was embroiled in controversy and saw a battle between the Hindu side and the Muslim side. In 1992, a mosque that stood there was razed.