Hours after New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he opposed Mohan Bhagwat’s scheduled Saturday event at Madison Square Garden, the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) extended an open invitation to anyone interested in understanding the organisation and its tenets.In a statement issued on Wednesday, RSS communications chief Jattvibeil Ambekar said Universal Oneness Celebration in New York exemplified an interfaith gathering at which RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat would address a diverse, multicultural and multi-faith audience.“Organised in the spirit of open dialogue and mutual respect, the event reflects the Bharatiya ethos, which is fundamentally inclusive and welcoming to all. This initiative is in line with the longstanding tradition of engagement by the Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh with varied communities across India and the world, fostering understanding and shared purpose,” Ambekar said.He said RSS invited anyone interested in learning more about its vision and philosophy to participate in the open forums for dialogue.The RSS statement came after Mamdani said in New York, “I don’t support the rally, but I don’t know if the city has any jurisdiction over cancelling a private event.”AHEAD Forum, a US-based public policy trust, is organising the Bhagwat event under the banner of Universal Oneness Celebration.Several US organisations, including Indian American Muslim Council, Interfaith Centre of New York and Hindus for Human Rights, have opposed Bhagwat’s event.Bhagwat, who is on a visit to the US, the UK and Canada, is scheduled to address nearly 5,000 people at Madison Square Garden on Saturday.Asked about the event, Mamdani, the first Indian-American mayor of New York City, said his vision of India was of a pluralistic society and a secular republic that believed in the belonging of every person in the country.“It has been incredibly troubling to see the rise of a movement based on an exclusionary vision,” Mamdani said, adding that he opposed the event as Mayor of a city that believed deeply in the belonging of every person, regardless of their colour, creed, religion, faith or place of origin.Attacking Mamdani’s remarks, American singer Mary Millben said on X, “Mamdani and all these socialist nuts are opposing the Madison Square Garden event featuring Mohan Bhagwat because they oppose PM @narendramodi and the @BJP4India.”Millben supported the theme of Bhagwat’s address, “Oneness”, and said she hoped it would include meaningful dialogue on religious freedom in India.“Given these nuts subscribe to the ideology of socialism, they don’t understand capitalism. MSG doesn’t answer to socialist rants. They answer to capitalism. And thus this event will go on because of it. My advice to Mamdani and his choir of socialists — become capitalists, raise money, rent MSG, and host your own rally for all your anti-Modi foolishness,” she added.Bhagwat arrived in the US on Tuesday for his three-nation visit, which also includes stops in the UK and Canada. The tour seeks to promote the RSS’s core messages and philosophy during its centenary year.