The problem? The entire story appears to be false.
Investigators and media reports quickly revealed that Mamdani’s “aunt” — identified as Masuma Mamdani — was living in Tanzania at the time of the 9/11 attacks. Even more damning, she doesn’t wear a hijab.
Seems like Mamdani’s only aunt, aka the real victim of 9/11, who was scared of taking the bus wearing her hijab, does not even wear hijab. pic.twitter.com/UVoS2Wx0Cc
That revelation completely shattered Mamdani’s victim narrative.
When confronted with the truth, the radical New York Democrat didn’t apologize or take responsibility. Instead, he scrambled to change his story.
By Monday, Mamdani was backpedaling — claiming he had simply “misspoken” about which relative he was referring to.
“I was speaking about my aunt, I was speaking about Zehra Fuhi, my father’s cousin, who sadly passed away a few years ago,” Mamdani told reporters, attempting to shift blame.
According to The New York Post, Mamdani tried to justify the confusion by saying, “Fuhi means paternal aunt in Urdu and Hindi.”
That linguistic spin didn’t sit well with critics, who pointed out that the candidate’s initial emotional story — delivered with tears and trembling voice — was clearly meant to deceive. Mamdani’s so-called “aunt” wasn’t his aunt at all, but a distant cousin he suddenly remembered after being caught in a lie.
Despite being exposed, Mamdani refused to take accountability. Instead, he lashed out at the media and his critics, blaming them for focusing on his “family story” instead of his message.
“And for the takeaway for my more than 10-minute address about Islamophobia in this race and in this city to be the question of my aunt tells you everything about Andrew Cuomo and his inability to reckon with a crisis of his own,” Mamdani said defiantly, attacking Cuomo and others for daring to call him out.
WATCH:
Rather than acknowledging the fabrication, Mamdani chose to double down — portraying himself once again as a victim of political persecution and media scrutiny.
This isn’t the first time Mamdani, who represents the far-left wing of the Democratic Party, has courted controversy. The self-described “Democratic Socialist” has repeatedly aligned himself with anti-police rhetoric, pro-Palestinian protests, and radical socialist economic ideas that have alienated moderate Democrats and outraged conservatives across the city.
Now, his credibility is in free fall. What was supposed to be a heartfelt personal story about prejudice has morphed into a scandal about dishonesty and political opportunism.
New Yorkers are left wondering: if Mamdani is willing to invent a story about his own family to gain sympathy, what else might he lie about once in office?
At a time when trust in politicians is already at rock bottom, Mamdani’s fake “aunt” story is a stark reminder of how far some on the left will go to manipulate emotion and push their narrative.
For a candidate running on “truth” and “justice,” Zohran Mamdani has managed to expose himself as exactly what New Yorkers have come to expect from the radical left — another fraud selling identity politics over integrity.
