Mamdanis rent-freeze meddling crossed the line and these texts prove it

On Thursday, the day Mayor Zohran Mamdani’s rent freeze took full effect, the property owners suing to overturn it revealed some startling evidence.Their attorneys released hundreds of texts and emails that top Mamdani aides exchanged with members of the Rent Guidelines Board, which the court forced the city to produce.Mamdani ran explicitly on delivering 0% rent adjustments on rent-stabilized apartments for four consecutive years.The power to set stabilized rents rests wholly with the RGB — not the mayor.Yet Mamdani promoted his signature promise with various social-media stunts, including a New Year’s Day polar plunge off Coney Island.He vowed to appoint only RGB members who understood landlords are “doing just fine.”After taking office, he named six of the board’s nine members, including Chair Chantella Mitchell.Mamdani then started repeatedly referring to the RGB as an “independent board” — a tacit admission that City Hall has no business meddling in its deliberations.Even as he touted the board’s independence, however, at least eight top administration officials were communicating with RGB members and staff, according to the evidence produced in court.Chief among them was Arvind Sindhwani, deputy chief of staff to Deputy Mayor Leila Bozorg, who was in touch with the RGB more than 100 times — with Mitchell as his main contact.On Feb.28, Sindhwani asked the RGB chair to move the date of the board’s preliminary vote from April 30 to May 7.Days later, Mitchell reported that “all members are good for 5/7,” and the vote occurred on that date.On March 9, Sindhwani asked to review the list of speakers and groups invited to testify before the board.He asked Mitchell to discuss it with him before she finalized the list, and she kept him updated.Why would an independent board run its speaker list past City Hall?Then on June 16, the public’s last day to submit testimony and hours before the final public hearing, Mitchell emailed Sindhwani a d...