New York City Mayor Zohran Mamdani said he would press King Charles III to return the Koh-i-Noor diamond. Speaking at a Wednesday press conference before meeting the monarch, Mamdani said he would encourage the King to give the historic gem back if he had a private conversation with him.
Mamdani made the remark ahead of the monarch’s State Visit to the United States. During the trip King Charles addressed a joint meeting of the US Congress and, alongside Queen Camilla, was honored at a state dinner hosted by President Donald Trump and First Lady Melania Trump.
The royal couple visited the 9/11 Memorial in New York City to pay respects to victims of the 2001 attacks and also toured Harlem Grown, an urban farming network in Upper Manhattan. Mamdani met King Charles at the 9/11 Memorial.
The Koh-i-Noor, a 105.6-carat diamond, was presented to Queen Victoria in 1849 by Maharajah Duleep Singh and was later set in the Crown of Queen Elizabeth the Queen Mother for the 1937 coronation. It is currently on display at the Tower of London.
India has said it will continue to explore avenues to reclaim the Koh-i-Noor, raising the issue with the UK government from time to time and seeking what it calls a satisfactory resolution. The Historic Royal Palaces charity notes the diamond has passed through many hands over centuries, including Mughal emperors, Shahs of Iran, Emirs of Afghanistan and Sikh maharajas.
