Visas of 300 international students revoked, more expected, says Trump admin
ByAbhimanyu Kulkarni
Mar 31, 2025 01:25 PM IST
US has revoked over 300 international students' visas, sparking fears of more deportations. The crackdown targets students involved in campus protests.
The Donald Trump administration recently revoked the visas of over 300 students, creating panic among several Indian, and other international students living in the US. Secretary of State Marco Rubio has added to the fears hinting that more student deportations are on the horizon.
Georgetown University students hold pictures of people killed in Gaza, rally in support of Badar Khan Suri, a Georgetown University professor, demanding his release from a deportation process over his views on the Gaza war.(AP Photo)
Georgetown University students hold pictures of people killed in Gaza, rally in support of Badar Khan Suri, a Georgetown University professor, demanding his release from a deportation process over his views on the Gaza war.(AP Photo)
The crackdown is allegedly aimed at students involved in campus activism. It has now expanded to include not just those who physically participated in protests, but also students who liked, shared, or commented on "anti-national" posts on social media.
"We’re looking every day for these lunatics that are tearing things up.” Marco Rubio, known for his hardline stance on national security, implied that the students in question were taking part in disruptive activities, though he did not specify the exact actions that led to their visa cancellations.
Rubio recently announce that the State Department may have revoked more than 300 visas of international students and warned that the Trump administration was looking every day for "these lunatics". His remarks came in response to a question about Rumeysa Ozturk, a Turkish student who was detained in Somerville, Massachusetts, outside of Boston, by masked and plainclothes agents. Her detention was the latest Trump administration action against a foreign student who had voiced support for Palestinians in Israel's war in Gaza.
What happened with Rumeysa Ozturk?
Rumeysa Ozturk, a Fulbright Scholar and doctoral student in Child Study and Human Development, was detained on Tuesday evening outside Tufts University in Somerville, Massachusetts, by agents in plain clothes.
Her arrest followed a year after she co-authored an opinion piece in The Tufts Daily criticizing the university's refusal to divest from companies linked to Israel, as well as its stance on Palestinian rights.
Ozturk’s lawyer, Mahsa Khanbabai, filed a lawsuit challenging the legality of the detention, arguing that Ozturk’s right to free speech had been violated. Khanbabai said, "It appears the only thing she is being targeted for is her right to free speech."
While a federal judge in Boston intervened temporarily to prevent Ozturk’s removal from Massachusetts, the Department of Justice confirmed that she had already been transferred to Louisiana.
Ozturk’s supporters have raised alarm, claiming that her detention is the first known immigration arrest of a Boston-area student involved in pro-Palestinian activism under the Trump administration.
Critics of the crackdown argue that it represents an assault on free speech and academic freedom. These actions have been met with outrage from student groups, civil rights advocates, and some Jewish organizations, who believe the administration is conflating legitimate criticism of Israel’s policies with support for Hamas, a designated terrorist organization.
Fear among international students, including Indians
The State Department's move to revoke the F-1 visas of over 300 international students, many of whom have been vocal in their support for Palestinian rights, has reverberated across US college campuses.
The F-1 visa is a non-immigrant visa that allows international students to live in the United States while pursuing academic studies at accredited institutions.
Eligible schools include universities, colleges, high schools, seminaries, conservatories, and approved language programs. To qualify, applicants must be accepted into a full-time program at a SEVP-certified institution, demonstrate English proficiency (or enroll in courses to improve it), and show proof of sufficient financial resources to cover both their education and living costs in the US.
Indian students have historically constituted a significant portion of the international student population in the United States, according to data from the US Department of State.
Growing number of student deportations
Indian PhD student Ranjani Srinivasan was forced to self-deport herself to Canada after her student visa was revoked on allegations of ‘supporting Hamas’. In an interview with Al Jazeera, Srinivasan said she never expected her institution, Columbia University, to let her down, but that is exactly what she feels it did.
Srinivasan, a doctoral student at Columbia University in New York, first got an email from the United States consulate in Chennai on March 5, stating that her student visa had been revoked.
While the 37-year-old was still trying to make sense of it all, contacting her PhD group and the university authorities, ICE agents showed up at her door.
She flew out of New York to Canada on March 11, and a grainy security camera footage from LaGuardia Airport showing her dragging a suitcase went viral throughout the world.
Also among those detained was Mahmoud Khalil, a former graduate student at Columbia University, who led pro-Palestinian protests.
The controversy has been amplified by reports that US universities, including Columbia, have faced pressure from the Trump administration to combat antisemitism on campus. At one point, the administration froze $400 million in federal funding to Columbia, accusing the institution of failing to address concerns over antisemitism effectively. However, the funding was later restored after the university agreed to implement stricter measures, including enhanced campus security.
Free Speech
Trump Administration
Columbia University
Donald Trump
Deportation
Immigration
Us Immigration
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