NEW DELHI: India is following the Trump administration’s decision to pause new visa interviews for students and exchange visitors and hopes that applications of Indian students will be considered on merit, the external affairs ministry said on Thursday.
“We have seen reports suggesting the US government’s updated guidance regarding student and exchange visitor visa applicants. The welfare of Indian students abroad remains an utmost priority to the Government of India. We will continue to follow further developments in this regard,” external affairs ministry spokesperson Randhir Jaiswal told a weekly media briefing.
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“While we note that issuance of visas is a sovereign function, we hope that the applications of Indian students will be considered on merit and that they will be able to join their academic programs on time,” Jaiswal added.
The official said 330,000 Indian students were studying in the US in 2023-24.
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Jaiswal was responding to reports that the US State Department has directed embassies around the world to stop scheduling new student visa interviews. According to these reports, the Trump administration is considering expanded vetting of applicants’ social media profiles.
State Department spokesperson Tammy Bruce has said the US government would use “every tool in our tool chest to vet anyone coming in, who wants to come into this country”.
“America is serious about making sure we know who you are and why you want to come here,” Bruce said.
The Trump administration made global headlines in March and April this year, cancelling visas of hundreds of international students due to their participation in pro-Palestine protests on campus. Some of them had only put out social media posts in favour of the Palestinian cause.
Badar Khan Suri, a PhD scholar at Georgetown University, was detained by US authorities over allegations that he had close ties to the Palestinian militant group Hamas. Ranjani Srinivasan, a scholar at Columbia University, found her visa cancelled for “supporting Hamas and terrorist activities”. Other reports at the time indicated that several Indian students faced visa cancellations due to charges of minor violations.
Washington’s latest decision causes uncertainty for Indian students applying to the United States. According to a US diplomatic cable cited in the US media, consular sections in embassies have been instructed that their priority remains immigrant visas and services for US citizens. It is unclear if the Trump administration has indicated a timeline for resuming fresh student visa interviews.
“Several students have already paid deposits to their American universities. They have also given up offers from universities in other countries. Some of the students I work with have not got a visa interview. While they are not worried just yet, if they don’t eventually get to go to America, they don’t have an option to study. Some students have chosen to go to the UK or the Netherlands instead of the US due to the political uncertainty,” said Mrinalini Batra, Founder and CEO of International Education Exchange, an education consultancy.