Who is Ranjani Srinivasan, whose visa was revoked by Trump administration? 10 key things to know about Indian scholar

Ranjani Srinivasan, an Indian scholar, is making headlines after Trump administration revoked her visa. According to Department of Homeland Security, the Indian citizen has self-deported after participating in pro-Palestinian protests at United States' Columbia University. This follows suspension of Ranjani Srinivasan's visa last week.

The Homeland Security department reportedly released a video of Ranjani Srinivasan, who seems to be at LaGuardia Airport, rushing through a jetway with her bags, The Washington Times reported. As Donald Trump government intensifies its campaign to deport foreigners who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at the school last year, the US Justice Department is probing claims that Columbia University concealed “illegal aliens” on its campus, AP reported.

Authorities raided university residences on Thursday evening, but no one was arrested. By Friday afternoon, the matters were made clear about the search warrant in connection with two individuals who were linked with the demonstrations that were deemed to support Hamas, officially designated as a terrorist organisation. One was Ranjani Srinivasan and the other was a Palestinian woman. The Palestinian woman was arrested last April by federal immigration authorities following the agitation at the university. She was accused of overstaying in the US with an expired visa.

Who is Ranjani Srinivasan?

• Notably, Ranjani Srinivasan is a Columbia University's doctoral student from India.
• After her visa was revoked by the Trump administration she fled the US on an airliner.

• According to Srinivasan's bio on NYU Wagner’s official website, she is a Fulbright recipient, who has an impressive academic record. She obtained an M.Phil in Urban Planning from Columbia University's Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation (GSAPP).
• She holds a Master’s in Design from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design
• She obtained a Bachelor of Design (B.Des.) degree from CEPT University.
• Trump administration accused Ranjani Srinivasan for “advocating for violence and terrorism” and hence revoked her visa. As per the department's statement, the Indian scholar decided to “self-deport” on Tuesday.
• A news release indicated that Ranjani Srinivasan had entered the United States on an F-1 visa and was allegedly “involved in activities supporting Hamas, a terrorist organisation.”

• “On March 5, 2025, the Department of State revoked her visa," adding, the news release stated, “The Department of Homeland Security has obtained video footage of her using the CBP Home App to self-deport on March 11.”
• Srinivasan’s profile description on NYU Wagner’s official website states, “Their research focuses on the evolving nature of land-labour relations in peri-urban statutory towns in India. Broadly, this project aims to examine shifts in the political economy of labour that have now culminated in the current crisis of jobless growth.”
• Notably, her interest areas cover political economy of development, the spatial politics of land, and the sociology of labour, the website states.