Demands to dismiss Edison mayorâs assistant accused of racist remarks
Demands to dismiss Edison mayorâs assistant accused of racist remarks
Calling themselves âAsian American community leadersâ with connections to Edison, more than 150 individuals signed a statement demanding that the mayor and town council fire Nilesh Dasondi, who is the special assistant to Edison Mayor Tom Lankey.
Dasondi, who was appointed to the special assistant to the mayorâs post five weeks ago, allegedly made comments reflecting âhateâ and âracismâ toward Chinese Americans, when he referred to COVID-19 as the âChinese Virusâ in several messages in 2020.
The accusation of racism by one Asian ethnic group against another Asian ethnic group in Edison is striking because the share of Asian residents in Edison is 48.7%, an estimated five times larger than the share of Asians in New Jerseyâs population as a whole, according to 2019 U.S. Census Da
Democrats choose Joshi over Bhagia for party line in Edison mayoral primary
Democrats choose Joshi over Bhagia for party line in Edison mayoral primary
Correspondent
In what is usually behind-the-scenes power wrangling, the feud between Edison’s local Democratic Party members and the Middlesex County Democratic Organization (MCDO) has gone public.
The MCDO denied the will of the Edison Democratic Party Committee by throwing its official support behind Edison Councilman Sam Joshi for the Edison mayoral position, instead of backing Mahesh Bhagia, the candidate favored by the Edison Democrats.
Bhagia, who serves as chair of the local Edison Democratic Party, won the local party’s endorsement in February by a 3-to-1 margin.
MyCentralJersey.com
Township Democratic Chairman Mahesh Bhagia was removed from the Middlesex County Democratic Organization slate in the June primary for mayor because of his alleged connection to the investigation, coupled with his allies forming a slate to challenge other county political leaders.
In a statement, Middlesex County Democratic Chairman Kevin P. McCabe said a slate of candidates aligned with Bhagia is challenging the party s District 18 legislators, the county surrogate and county commissioners. As chair of the Edison Democratic Organization, Mr. Bhagia is aligned with these challengers, many of whom are in his inner circle and at least one of whom was named in the federal investigation into this racist 2017 mailing. It is remarkable that Mr. Bhagia sought the MCDO line while remaining silent about this challenge by his allies to the same candidates he seeks to run alongside, McCabe said.
Mayoral candidate responds to claims he was involved in racist flier
Mayoral candidate responds to claims he was involved in racist flier ×
Edison mayoral candidate Mahesh Bhagia, who has been endorsed by the Edison Democratic Organization for the November election, issued the following statement on March 10 regarding an investigation into a racist flier that was distributed in the community in 2017:
“The racial flier was shameful and deplorable, and I was personally offended when I saw it. I also believe creating a sham investigation of the flier to further personal political ambitions and target political opponents is equally shameful and deplorable.
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EDISON – Mayor Thomas Lankey and Councilman Robert Diehl have appealed to the New Jersey Attorney General’s office and/or the Middlesex County Prosecutor’s Office to step in and bring those responsible for the racist flier that was distributed by mail during the 2017 Edison Township Public Schools Board of Education election to justice.
Lankey and Diehl expressed frustration with the lack of movement in the case at a press conference on March 3.
“It is frustrating to have this event that occurred three years ago and to this day not have uncovered and determined who is responsible,” Lankey said. “I applaud our [Township] Council and Committee of the Whole. Without them, honestly, I don’t think we would have gotten to where we are today and we just need to help them bring it over the goal line, to finish.”