US judge orders release of Indian scholar arrested over alleged Hamas links

An Indian scholar from Georgetown University, Badar Khan Suri , was released from US immigration detention on Wednesday after a federal judge ruled in his favour.

He was arrested over alleged links to Hamas amid the Trump administration’s crackdown on students and universities, having a pro-stance for Palestine.

He will now return to his family in Virginia while his legal case continues.

“Hearing the judge’s words brought tears to my eyes,” Suri’s wife, Mapheze Saleh, said in a statement released by the Centre for Constitutional Rights (CCR), one of the groups representing her husband in court.

“Speaking out about what’s happening in Palestine is not a crime,” Saleh added. “Let’s show the world that this country is still a place where people can and do express their beliefs without fear.”

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Khan Suri, who was held in Texas, is challenging the Trump administration over his arrest and detention, claiming violations of his First Amendment and other constitutional rights. He also faces deportation proceedings in Texas.

Since the start of the Trump administration, immigration authorities have detained foreign students across the US, many of whom were involved in campus protests over the Israel-Hamas war.

Khan Suri is among the latest to be freed, alongside Rumeysa Ozturk from Tufts University and Mohsen Mahdawi from Columbia University.

Khan Suri was arrested on 17 March by plain-clothed officers outside his home in Arlington, Virginia. He was flown to detention centres in Louisiana and Texas.

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The Trump administration said his visa was revoked due to his social media posts and his wife’s family ties to Gaza. They accused him of supporting Hamas, which the US designates as a terrorist group.

However, Khan Suri’s lawyers argue he was unfairly targeted because his wife’s father had worked with the Hamas-backed Gazan government long before the 7 October 2023 Hamas attack on Israel. The ACLU pointed out that Khan Suri barely knew his father-in-law, Ahmed Yousef.

US District Judge Patricia Tolliver Giles ordered his release, stating that Khan Suri had strong constitutional claims and posed no threat to the community. She emphasised that speaking out against Israel’s military actions is protected political speech under the First Amendment, which applies to both citizens and non-citizens.

While the Justice Department argued that his case should be handled in Texas and raised concerns over costs, the judge rejected these points, saying that national security concerns do not override constitutional rights.

After the hearing, Khan Suri’s lawyers criticised the Trump administration for “disappearing” people over their views. ACLU attorney Sophia Gregg said, “Ideas are not illegal. If they can do this to Dr Suri, they can do this to anyone.”

Badar’s father speaks to Firstpost

Earlier, The father of Khan said that his son was wrongly accused by the Trump administration based on false claims and misleading links. He also denied that Badar has any connection to the Palestinian group Hamas.

Speaking exclusively to Firstpost , Badar’s father said the family has not spoken to him since his arrest. They are getting updates from his wife, who stays in touch with him through his lawyers.

Khan Suri came to the US in 2022 on a J-1 visa as a visiting scholar and postdoctoral fellow at Georgetown. He and his wife have three children. Before his arrest, he taught a course on majority and minority human rights in South Asia and hoped to pursue an academic career.