'Billionaire's Shouldn’t Exist': Zohran Mamdani Pledges To Hike Tax On New York's Top Earners

Zohran Mamdani, the winner of New York City's Democratic mayoral primary, has drawn both flak and praise for his controversial stance on major issues with latest challenging the existence of billionaires.

Responding to a query on the existence of billionaire's in a televised interview, the son of Indian filmaker Mira Nair said, “I don’t think that we should have billionaires because, frankly, it is so much money in a moment of such inequality.”  

“Ultimately, what we need more of is equality across our city and across our state and across our country,” Mammdani said.

Later, he mentioned that he was open to further discussion and mutual cooperation, while also stating, "I look forward to working with everyone, including billionaires, to make a city that is fair for all of them.”

Meanwhile, he also responmsed to a direct attack by President Donald Trump saying,“I have already had to start to get used to the fact that the president will talk about how I look, how I sound, where I’m from, who I am — ultimately because he wants to distract from what I’m fighting for."

This comes after Trump publicly said, “He's a communist and I think it's very bad for New York. I don't know if he's going to get in but he's a pure communist and I think he admits it.”

Also Read: CPM Congratulates And Endorses Zohran Mamdani as New York Mayor

Mamdani pushes for higher taxes on billionaires in NYC

The former housing counsellor had made it a peritnent part of campaign to raise the taxes levied on top earners in New York City. Explaining his stance, Mamdani mentioned that he expects to use the rise in revenue to enhance quality of life, inclusive of the ones that could be paying higher taxes.

The proposal set forth by Mamdani adds an additional 2 per cent tax on individuals whose annual income surpasses USD 1 million.

This received ground support from his voter base, which played a key role in his primary mayoral race victory. On the other hand, Mamdani has current net worth of USD 200,000, as per Forbes' estimates. 

Is Zohran Mamdani Anti-Billionaire? 

Recently, Mamdani mentioned that he was holding "the most dangerous job in NYC, which drew flak from Doordash, a top food delivery application, that had support ex-Governor Andrew Cuomo in an unsuccessful attempt to block Mamdani’s rise.