New Delhi, March 16, 2025The Students’ Federation of India (SFI) has strongly condemned the Trump administration’s revocation of visas and cancellation of university admissions for expatriate students protesting U.S. involvement in Israel’s war crimes in Palestine. Labeling the measures as fascist, SFI accused the U.S. government and complicit universities of punishing students for exercising their right to dissent.Among those affected is Ranjani Srinivasan, an Indian PhD student in Urban Planning at Columbia University from Chennai, whose admission was canceled. SFI extended solidarity to Srinivasan and other targeted students, drawing parallels to similar repression faced by Indian students under the Modi government for opposing systemic injustices like privatization and communalism.“Authoritarianism wears the same face of oppression, be it in India or the U.S.,” the statement read, calling the crackdown a scare tactic to deter student activism. SFI urged India’s External Affairs Minister to intervene and hold the U.S. accountable for violating students’ rights.The organization also saluted the global student community resisting imperialist policies, particularly in the U.S. and Europe.
