The Indian government’s missions in the United States are in contact with Indian students there who have received emails revoking their visa status, and have offered them “support”, the Ministry of External Affairs said on Thursday (April 17, 2025).
The comments mark a shift from a previous statement that merely advised students to “follow the law”. To Indians vulnerable to the Trump administration’s crackdown, who face action by the U.S. Departments of State and Homeland Security, the MEA’s statement indicates it is taking their plight more seriously than in the past.
While some have been sent notices after being identified as participants in student protests, especially in favour of the Palestinian cause, a number of Indians have received notices as their names appear in government databases for minor infractions, including traffic violations.
Changing stance
“We are aware that several Indian students have received communication from the U.S. government regarding their F-1 visa status, which happens to be the student visa. We are looking into the matter. Our Embassy and Consulates are in touch with the students to provide support,” MEA spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal said at a weekly press briefing.
Also read: Explained | Why are student visas being revoked in the U.S.?
In a similar briefing on March 21, the spokesperson had said that visa and immigration policies lay within the “sovereign functions of a country”, adding that when “Indian nationals are abroad, they must comply with local laws and regulations.”
‘Not charged with any crime’
Mr. Jaiswal’s latest statement came in response to The Hindu’s query about the specific case of Indian student Chinmay Deore. Assisted by the American Civil Liberties Union (ACLU), Mr. Deore and three other foreign students enrolled at universities in Michigan filed a joint petition calling for their visa status to be restored in the U.S.’s SEVIS database, which stands for the Student and Exchange Visitor Information System.
Mr. Deore, who is in his final year of a bachelor’s degree programme at Wayne State University, had received an email from the University’s international students office informing him of his SEVIS status being terminated, as he had been “identified in a criminal records check and/or has had their VISA revoked.”
However, the petition maintained that none of the four student petitioners, including Nepali citizen Yogesh Joshi and two Chinese students, had been charged with, let alone convicted of, any crime in the U.S. “None has violated any immigration law. Nor have they been active in on-campus protests regarding any political issue,” the suit filed in the U.S. Eastern District of Michigan Southern Division read.
‘Legal route’
MEA officials did not confirm whether they were directly assisting Mr. Deore, but did say that they were advising students similarly affected to pursue a “legal route” to obtain an injunction on the deportation proceedings against them so they can complete their studies.
This week, a court in Wisconsin ordered a stay on the deportation of another Indian student, Isser Dasani, who was due to graduate next month in a computer engineering programme at the University of Madison-Wisconsin.
30% drop in F-1 visas
Such actions against foreign students is one more worry for those applying for an education in the U.S. this year. In addition to long visa wait times, the number of student visas issued in February 2025, the first month after U.S. President Donald Trump took over, have dropped nearly 30% from last year.
