Harvard University campus in Cambridge, Massachusetts - Reuters
Indian Students at Harvard Protest Pakistani Delegates’ Visit Post-Pahalgam, Ask Secretary Rubio to Revoke Visas
New Delhi: In a letter addressed to Harvard President Dr Alan Garber, Provost John F. Manning, Harvard Kennedy School Dean Jeremy Weinstein, and the Office for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging, Indian students urged the academic institution to publicly condemn the 22 April attack and reconsider hosting Pakistani officials at the Pakistan Conference 2025.
The letter, signed by Harvard Kennedy School students Surabhi Tomar and Abhishek Chaudhari on behalf of concerned students, alleged that the attack—carried out by militants linked to Lashkar-e-Taiba (LeT)—targeted Hindu civilians based on their faith. The students described the attack as a “faith-based massacre” as survivors reported being interrogated about their religion before the killings.
“These acts of violence were not indiscriminate—they were calculated attacks based solely on religious identity,” the letter read. “Harvard must ensure its campus does not become a platform for whitewashing state-enabled religious terrorism.”
The Indian students expressed particular concern that Pakistani delegates, including the country’s finance minister, Muhammad Aurangzeb, are slated to speak at the conference, despite Pakistan’s Senate’s new resolution reaffirming its support for Kashmir’s so-called “freedom struggle”, which they argued is often used to justify violence against Indian civilians.
“Welcoming representatives of a government that not only denies accountability for, but also ideologically supports such religion-based terrorism, risks Harvard being complicit in legitimizing those who enable or justify these crimes,” the letter added.
The concerned students asked Garber to issue a public statement condemning the Pahalgam attack, and affirming the university’s support for victims of religion-based violence, reconsider the participation of Pakistani officials at the upcoming Pakistan Conference 2025 and provide emotional and institutional support to affected students through the Office for Equity, Diversity, Inclusion, and Belonging.
In a parallel move, the students also wrote to US Secretary of State Marco Rubio, urging the Trump administration to revoke the visas of Pakistani officials travelling for the event. They called on the US government to “stand with victims and uphold America’s moral clarity in the face of terrorism”.
“Welcoming representatives of a government that enables or justifies terrorism risks Harvard being complicit,” the joint letter to Rubio read. “The United States must not host representatives of a state that protects and promotes organizations targeting civilians based on faith.” – ThePrint
