Trump bars Harvard University from enrolling foreign students; 788 Indians currently enrolled

NEW DELHI: In an escalation of its confrontation with Harvard University, the The Trump administration has stripped the Ivy League institution of its authorisation to enrol international students, putting nearly 7,000 students in jeopardy. The Department of Homeland Security announced on Thursday that thousands of current international students must either transfer to other universities or leave the United States of America.

The department justified its action by claiming that Harvard has fostered an "unsafe campus environment" by permitting what it termed "anti-American, pro-terrorist agitators” to assault Jewish students.

It also accused Harvard of collaborating with the Chinese Communist Party, alleging that the university hosted and trained members of a Chinese paramilitary group as recently as 2024. “This means Harvard can no longer enroll foreign students and existing foreign students must transfer or lose their legal status,” the agency said in a statement.

Harvard enrolls almost 6,800 foreign students at its campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts, accounting for more than a quarter of its student body. Most are graduate students, coming from more than 100 countries. According to Harvard's official data, between 500 and 800 Indian students and scholars participate in the university community annually. As per Hindustan Times, 788 students from India are currently enrolled at Harvard University.

Harvard decries action as 'unlawful'

Harvard called the action unlawful and said it's working to provide guidance to students. “This retaliatory action threatens serious harm to the Harvard community and our country, and undermines Harvard's academic and research mission,” the university said in a statement.

The confrontation represents an escalation in the Trump administration's battle with Harvard, which became the first major university to openly resist White House demands for changes at elite institutions the administration has criticized as centers of liberalism and antisemitism. The federal government has cut USD 2.6 billion in federal grants to Harvard, forcing it to self-fund much of its sprawling research operation.

President Donald Trump has said he also wants to strip the university of its tax-exempt status.

Harvard penalised for reporting failure

In a letter to Harvard on Thursday, Homeland Security secretary Kristi Noem said the school's sanction is “the unfortunate result of Harvard's failure to comply with simple reporting requirements.” Noem said Harvard can regain its ability to host foreign students if it produces a trove of records, including audio or video footage of foreign students participating in protests or dangerous activity on campus, within 72 hours.

“This administration is holding Harvard accountable for fostering violence, antisemitism, and coordinating with the Chinese Communist Party on its campus,” Noem said in a statement. The action revoked Harvard's certification in the Student and Exchange Visitor Program, which gives the school the ability to sponsor international students to get their visas and attend school in the US.

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Harvard president Alan Garber earlier this month said the university has made changes to its governance over the past year and a half, including a broad strategy to combat antisemitism, but warned it would not budge on its “its core, legally-protected principles” over fears of retaliation.

Students in Harvard College Democrats said the Trump administration is playing with students' lives to push a radical agenda and to quiet dissent.

“Trump's attack on international students is text book authoritarianism — Harvard must continue to hold the line,” the group said in a statement. The administration drew condemnation from free speech groups, including the Foundation for Individual Rights and Expression, which said Noem is demanding a “surveillance state.” "This sweeping fishing expedition reaches protected expression and must be flatly rejected," the group said in a statement.

New front in Harvard’s battle

The revocation opens a new front in a closely watched battle Many of Harvard's punishments have come through a federal antisemitism task force that says the university failed to protect Jewish students from harassment and violence amid a nationwide wave of pro-Palestinian protests. Homeland Security officials echoed those concerns in their Thursday announcement. It offered examples, including a recent internal report at Harvard, finding that many Jewish students reported facing discrimination or bias on campus.

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It also tapped into concerns that congressional Republicans have raised about ties between U.S. universities and China. Homeland Security officials said Harvard provided training to the Xinjiang Production and Construction Corps as recently as 2024. As evidence, it provided a link to a Fox News article, which in turn cited a letter from House Republicans. Asked for comment on the alleged coordination with the Chinese Communist Party, a Harvard spokesperson said the university will be responding to the House Republicans' letter.

Education chief condemns enforcement tactics

Ted Mitchell, president of the American Council on Education, called the latest action an “illegal, small-minded” overreach. “I worry that this is sending a very chilling effect to international students looking to come to America for education," he said. The Trump administration has leveraged the system for tracking international students' legal status as part of its broader attempts to crack down on higher education.

What was once a largely administrative database has become a tool of enforcement, as immigration officials revoked students' legal status directly in the system. Those efforts were challenged in court, leading to restorations of status and a nationwide injunction blocking the administration from pursuing further terminations.

(With inputs from PTI)