Indian PhD Student At Columbia University Self Deports After Her Visa Gets Revoked

Ranjani Srinivasan, a student of Urban Planning at the university, had entered the US on an F-1 student visa.

Ranjani Srinivasan seen at the airport leaving for India.

Source : ANI

An Indian national and doctoral scholar from Columbia University, Ranjani Srinivasa, self-deported using the CBP Home App on March 11 after her visa was revoked, the United States Department of Homeland Security (DHS) announced.

Ranjani Srinivasan, a student of Urban Planning at the university, had entered the US on an F-1 student visa.

Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem said in X post confirmed the student’s self-deportation, adding that it was a privilege to study and live in the US. “When you advocate for violence and terrorism, that privilege should be revoked, and you should not be in this country. I am glad to see one of the Columbia University terrorist sympathizers use the CBP Home App to self-deport.”

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

Srinivasan was seen in airport surveillance footage hurrying down a jetway along with her luggage. She left on Tuesday, according to India Today.

This comes as the US Justice Department has intensified its search on whether Columbia University concealed “illegal aliens” after the US President Donald Trump administration intensified its campaign to deport foreigners who participated in pro-Palestinian demonstrations at the school last year, according to the Associated Press.

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In a separate incident, a Palestinian woman, Leqaa Kordia, who was previously arrested during university protests last April, was detained by federal immigration authorities in Newark, New Jersey, for allegedly overstaying an expired visa.

Deputy Attorney General Todd Blanche, speaking at the Justice Department, said it was all part of the president’s “mission to end antisemitism in this country.”

He said that the investigation is ongoing, and “we are also looking at whether Columbia’s handling of earlier incidents violated civil rights laws and included terrorism crimes.”

The university, which was he site for a major student protest last year, has faced intense pressure from Trump’s administration. It recently cancelled $400 million in federal grants and contracts, largely for medical research, a move in response to the university's perceived insufficient action against students and faculty who criticised Israel’s military actions in Gaza.

What is self-deportation?

The DHS had rebranded a pre-existing app, CBP One, now known as CBP Home, on March 10. This app features an ‘self-deportation’ option, which can let undocumented immigrants declare their intent to leave the country.

CBP One was created by the Biden administration and was formerly used to process asylum claims at the southern border of the United States.

According to Al Jazeera, Noem said that the app would give “aliens” the option to self-deport “so they may still have the opportunity to return legally”. The mobile application can be downloaded for free either from Apple App or Google Play store.