On 15, September 2019 a website Ofmi.Org (Organisation for minorities of India), published an article  "An anonymous source within Tulsi Gabbard’s 2020 presidential campaign has confirmed that Gabbard the US congresswoman has refused an invitation to join Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s September 22 pep rally in Houston, Texas".

It was further reported that Gabbard’s decision to drop out of the event, dubbed “Howdy Modi,” follows on the heels of Congressman Ro Khanna’s statement, issued last month:

“It’s the duty of every American politician of Hindu faith to stand for pluralism, reject Hindutva, and speak for equal rights for Hindus, Muslims, Sikhs, Buddhists, and Christians.” Her action marks a significant change in engagement with India’s controversial premier considering she has previously met with him on four occasions". 

- Congressman Ro Khanna’s statement

The report of this little known website was shared by an Indian journalist Rana Ayyub who wrote, "Tulsi Gabbard refuses the invitation to attend Howdy Modi event in Houston. What a turnaround. Where does this leave her Indian fanboys"

The article of ofmi.org was shared by many users in Indian to mock PM Modi. Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Sevadal, Ashok Swain, Vinod Kapri, Sanjukta Basu were few influencers on social media who shared the article.

Tulsi gabbard herself denied the claim

Tulsi Gabbard replied to Rana Ayyub's tweet and wrote, "This article is misinformed. I’m not attending the Houston event due to previously scheduled presidential campaign events. However, I'm hoping to meet PM Modi on his visit to discuss the importance of maintaining the strong partnership of the world's oldest & largest democracies.

On September 19, Tulsi Gabbard released a video message on her youtube channel with a welcome message for PM Modi and an apology for not attending the event due to previously scheduled presidential campaign events.

“Namaste! I would like to extend a warm welcome to Prime Minister Narendra Modi on his latest visit to the US,” Gabbard said, adding, “and I am sorry that I will not be able to join there in person due to previously scheduled presidential campaign events.”

- Tulsi Gabbard

The message was also tweeted by her on 21st September.

Howdy Modi

The event, named “Howdy Modi!”, will be attended by American president Donald Trump as a “special gesture” to strengthen the bond between the two countries. 

The 'Howdy, Modi!' event "will be the largest gathering for an invited foreign leader visiting the United States other than the Pope. This event is the third meeting between Donald Trump and PM Modi in three months. The event will be held at NRG Stadium in Houston, Texas. The stadium is one of America's largest professional football stadiums and is home to the Houston Texans franchise. This will be the first time a US president and Indian Prime Minister will be addressing a joint rally an estimated over 50,000 Indian-Americans at a massive event.

Conclusion: The claim that Tulsi Gabbard rejected an invite to the "Howdy Modi" event in Houston on 22 September is false. Tulsi Gabbard herself clarified that she will not be able to attend the Howdy Modi event due to previously scheduled presidential campaign-related events. Even though she is not attending the event, she has released a video message welcoming PM Modi.  

ofmi.org: A Shady Propaganda website

Ofmi.org is managed by Khalistan supporters and the website looks shady as many of the web pages are broken on the website. The website sikhmail.org also points to the same server. A quick look into their article suggests that they have been publishing articles targetting the majority community, RSS and Indian government. In one of their video, they have declared that the fascist Ideology of Brahminism is Root Cause of Problem in India. All these things clearly suggest that the website is not trust worthy. So, it's surprising why a journalist like Rana Ayyub will promote fake news by such a shady website.