An assistant professor at the SRM Institute of Science and Technology in Tamil Nadu was suspended for being critical of India’s Operation Sindoor, targeting terrorist infrastructure in Pakistan and Pakistan-occupied Kashmir.
In the early hours of May 7, India launched a precision attack against nine sites in Pakistan. Authorities said that these facilities served as training camps for Jaish-e-Mohammed and Laskhar-e-Taiba terrorists.
Responding to this, the professor wrote on Instagram, “India killed a child in Pakistan and wounded two people in the early Wednesday strikes. Killing innocent lives for your own bloodlust and election stunts is not bravery and it is not justice. It is a cowardly attack.” According to Pakistan, 26 civilians were killed in the attacks including women and children, and 46 were injured.
In a second post, the professor said that the escalation would lead to ‘economic shutdown’, ‘food shortage’, ‘loss of life’ among other things for the next decade.
Following the posts, the SRM Institute issued a suspension order enquiry for her involvement in “unethical activities.”
The suspended professor has been employed at SRM University since 2012. A source employed at SRM told TNM that following the suspension her faculty profile link has been removed from the Institute's website.
It is worth noting that SRM Group of Institutions is owned by T R Paarivendhar, founder of the Indiya Jananayaka Katchi (IJK), a political party allied with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) during the 2024 Lok Sabha elections. Paarivendhar contested from the Perambalur Lok Sabha constituency under this alliance.