Last Updated:
The US Department of Homeland Security (DHS) alleged that Srinivasan engaged in activities that supported Hamas, which is recognized as a terrorist organization.
Ranjani Srinivasan. (Screengrab of video shared by @EndWokeness)
The US Department of Homeland Security has announced that an Indian doctoral student from Columbia University, whose visa was revoked for allegedly supporting Hamas, has voluntarily left the United States.
Using the CBP Home App, the student identified as Ranjani Srinivasan facilitated their departure from the United States, following the cancellation of their visa due to the security concerns raised by their actions.
Srinivasan, an Indian national and doctoral student in Urban Planning at Columbia University, entered the United States on a F-1 student visa. According to the DHS, Srinivasan was involved in activities supporting Hamas, a designated terrorist organisation.
The US Department of State revoked her visa on March 5, 2025. The department further confirmed that she self-deported on March 11, 2025, using the CBP Home App, and video footage of the process has been obtained.
Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem confirmed the self-deportation. In a post on X, Noem said that it is a privilege to be granted a visa to live and study in the United States of America, adding that the privilege should be revoked if someone advocates for violence and terrorism.
It is a privilege to be granted a visa to live & study in the United States of America.When you advocate for violence and terrorism that privilege should be revoked and you should not be in this country.
I’m glad to see one of the Columbia University terrorist sympathizers… pic.twitter.com/jR2uVVKGCM
— Secretary Kristi Noem (@Sec_Noem) March 14, 2025
According to Srinivasan’s bio on NYU Wagner’s official website, she holds an M.Phil in Urban Planning from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Architecture, Planning, and Preservation (GSAPP). She has also earned a Master’s in Design from Harvard University’s Graduate School of Design and a Bachelor of Design (B.Des.) in Design from CEPT University.
Her bio also suggests that Srinivasan’s research centers focus on the changing dynamics of land-labor relations in India’s peri-urban areas. It revealed that their primary areas of interest “in the political economy of development, the spatial politics of land, and the sociology of labour.”
