Washington: New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani has said that he did not support an upcoming event in Manhattan, in which Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat is scheduled to speak on Saturday.

"I don't support the rally, but I don't know if the city has any jurisdiction on cancelling a private event," Mamdani, who is the first Muslim and Indian American mayor of New York City, said when asked if the event should be cancelled, according to a Reuters report.

"The vision of India that I was taught by my family and one that I grew up being very familiar with was of a pluralistic society of a secular Republic that believed in the belonging of each and every person who was from India. And it has been incredibly troubling to see the rise of a movement that is predicated on an exclusionary vision," Reuters quoted him.

The event's website casts the August 29 gathering as the "Universal Oneness Celebration" bringing together the Hindu American community.

The organizers, American Hindus for Engagement and Dialogue, say the event is backed by several Hindu American groups and promotes shared heritage and interfaith unity. Many local organizations have criticized it over Bhagwat's attendance and the RSS' history, according to the Reuters report.

The RSS, the report said, had said in May it had organised foreign visits, including to the U.S., to counter perceptions it is a paramilitary outfit involved in attacks on minority communities.

(With Reuters inputs)