A carnival float created for the upcoming India Day parade in New York City depicts a Hindu temple, sparking controversy. Several groups have called it anti-Muslim and said it should be removed from the event.
The tableau depicts a temple to Hindu deity Lord Ram, which was dedicated earlier this year at a site believed to be his birthplace in Ayodhya, India. But the temple site has long been a hotly debated site between Hindus and Muslims, and a mosque that stood there was demolished by a Hindu extremist mob in the early 1990s.
Some American organizations have written letters to New York City Mayor Eric Adams and New York Governor Kathy Hochul, calling the tableau anti-Muslim and saying that it glorifies the demolition of the mosque.
Groups that signed the letter included the Council on American Islamic Relations, the Indian American Muslim Council, and Hindus for Human Rights.
“The presence of this tableau reflects the desire of these groups to merge Hindu nationalist ideology with Indian identity, but India is a secular country,” the letter said.
The Vishwa Hindu Parishad of America, which organized the float, says it represents a Hindu place of worship and is intended to glorify a deity seen as an important part of Indian and Hindu identity. The Hindu American Foundation said it was an attempt at freedom of expression.
The Federation of Indian Associations, which organises Sunday’s event, said the parade represents India’s cultural diversity and will feature tableaux from various communities.
“There’s no place for hate,” Adams said in a press conference earlier this week. “If there’s a float or an individual in the parade that is promoting hate, they shouldn’t be doing it.”
Adams’ office later told The Associated Press that the right to free speech under the First Amendment of the U.S. Constitution prevents the city from denying a permit or demanding that a float or parade’s message be changed simply because it doesn’t agree with its content.
Hindus say the site in Ayodhya was sacred to them long before Muslim Mughals demolished a temple there in 1528 to build the Babri Mosque, which was destroyed in 1992. The mosque’s demolition was followed by nationwide rioting in which nearly 2,000 people, mostly Muslims, were killed. In 2019, the Indian Supreme Court handed the land over to Hindus.
Human rights experts say India has seen a rise in attacks, including violence and discrimination, on minorities in recent years under Hindu nationalist Prime Minister Narendra Modi, a charge he denies.
New York City’s annual parade takes place three days after India’s Independence Day.