Ranjani Srinivasan, an Indian doctoral student at Columbia University, has voluntarily left the United States after her student visa was revoked over allegations of advocating violence and supporting terrorism.
In a statement on Friday (local time), U.S. Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem confirmed that Srinivasan, a student in Urban Planning at Columbia, “self-deported” using the CBP Home App.
“Today, Secretary of Homeland Security Kristi Noem announced that one of the Columbia students who had her student visa revoked for advocating violence and terrorism self-deported using the CBP Home App, and ICE arrested a Palestinian student for overstaying her expired F-1 visa,” a statement from the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) said.
The U.S. Department of State revoked Srinivasan’s visa on March 5, alleging that she was involved in activities supporting Hamas, which is designated as a terrorist organization by the U.S. government.
“Ranjani Srinivasan, a citizen and national of India, entered the United States on an F-1 student visa as a doctoral student in Urban Planning at Columbia University. Srinivasan was involved in activities supporting Hamas, a terrorist organization. On March 5, 2025, the Department of State revoked her visa. The Department of Homeland Security has obtained video footage of her using the CBP Home App to self-deport on March 11,” the release stated.
Secretary Noem reiterated that holding a U.S. visa is a privilege, not a right.
“It is a privilege to be granted a visa to live and 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,” she wrote in a post on X.
In a related case, another student, Leqaa Kordia, a Palestinian from the West Bank, was arrested by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) for overstaying her expired F-1 student visa. Her visa was terminated on January 26, 2022, due to lack of attendance, according to DHS.
Kordia had previously been arrested in April 2024 for participating in pro-Hamas protests at Columbia University in New York City.
