US Judge says Trump administration can’t deport Indian post-doctoral student

WASHINGTON, DC: A federal judge has blocked Donald Trump’s administration’s move to deport a Georgetown University researcher studying and teaching on a student visa, accused of opposing US foreign policy in Israel-Hamas conflict, CNN reported.

US federal immigration authorities detained the Indian national and postdoctoral fellow, Badar Khan Suri, outside his home in Arlington’s Rosslyn neighbourhood in Virginia on Monday night, his lawyer said in a lawsuit requesting his immediate release.

The US district judge has ordered not to remove Badar Khan Suri from the country unless the court issues another ruling.

According to the petition filed for Suri’s release, he was put in deportation proceedings under the provision of immigration law that the US government has invoked to try to deport Mahmoud Khalil, the Columbia University graduate student and green card holder who led pro-Palestinian protests on campus.

The provision enables the US Secretary of State to deport non-citizens if the secretary determines that their presence in the US would threaten the country’s foreign policy. His petition said Suri has no criminal record and has not been charged with a crime, Politico reported.

In his petition, Suri’s lawyer said that Suri is being punished as his wife, who is a US citizen, is of Palestinian heritage and because the government suspects that he and his wife are against the US foreign policy towards Israel.

The petition said the couple has “long been doxxed and smeared” on anonymously run, far-right websites due to their support for Palestinian rights.

According to the petition, Suri’s wife, Mapheze Saleh, has been alleged to have “ties with Hamas” and once worked for Al Jazeera.

US Department of Homeland Security spokesperson Tricia McLaughlin said that US Secretary of State Marco Rubio on Saturday issued a determination that the visa of Suri should be cancelled for foreign policy reasons.

In a post on X, McLaughlin stated, “Suri was a foreign exchange student at Georgetown University actively spreading Hamas propaganda and promoting antisemitism on social media. Suri has close connections to a known or suspected terrorist, who is a senior advisor to Hamas. The Secretary of State issued a determination on March 15, 2025 that Suri’s activities and presence in the United States rendered him deportable under INA section 237(a)(4)(C)(i).”

Suri’s detention is the latest in such immigration-related arrests that US President Donald Trump says are just beginning to ramp up. According to Trump, these arrests target “terrorist sympathizers” or people who have “engaged in pro-terrorist, anti-Semitic, anti-American activity.” (ANI)