Indian-origin student at Princeton University arrested, barred from campus over anti-Israel protests

An Indian-origin student attending Princeton University has been arrested and barred from the campus for participating in pro-Palestine protests. Alongside another student Hassan Sayed GS, Achinthya Sivalingan, who was born in Coimbatore and raised in Columbus, staged demonstrations that led to their arrest and subsequent banishment from campus grounds.

Protesters at Princeton demanded divestment from companies supporting Israel in times of its conflict in Gaza. The escalation prompted university authorities to take action, resulting in the arrest of Sivalingan and another student within minutes of setting up protest tents.

The protests come at a time when US President Joe Biden approved a $16 billion military aid package for Israel. While New York's Columbia University witnessed the focal point of the demonstrations, various other institutions such as the University of Southern California, Emory University, and Brown University, among others, also saw similar protests.

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University spokesperson Jennifer Morrill reportedly stated, “The two graduate students have been immediately barred from campus, pending a disciplinary process.”

“No force was used by Public Safety officers when conducting the arrests, which occurred without resistance,” Morrill added.

A first-year PhD student Urvi reportedly revealed that“they’ve been evicted from their houses and were given under five minutes to get their stuff."

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Moreover, as per reports, Columbia University's faculty senate is set to vote on Friday (Apr 26) regarding a resolution rebuking the school's president Minouche Shafik. This comes as Shafik, in a controversial move, authorised the New York Police Department (NYPD) to remove the “Gaza Solidarity Encampment” from the campus premises.

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Brown University in a release said, "Encampment on Brown University’s historic and residential greens is a violation of University policy, and participants in the encampment have been verbally informed of this fact and that they will face conduct proceedings."

State Department reacts

A spokesperson from the State Department Vedant Patelon Thursday (Apr 25) affirmed that the Biden administration stands behind the right to engage in peaceful protests. “We, of course, support the right of anybody to peacefully protest, to demonstrate, to make their voices heard, to express themselves in a peaceful and nonviolent way,” Patel said at a press briefing.

(With inputs from agencies)