Bengaluru: A UK-based professor of Indian origin, Professor Nitasha Kaul, has said that she faced entry denial upon arriving at Bengaluru airport for an event to which she had been invited by the Karnataka government.
The Kashmiri Pandit academic, currently based in London, shared her experience on X, claiming that immigration officials provided no explanation and she had not received any prior notice or information.
Professor Kaul stated, “Denied entry to India for speaking on democratic & constitutional values. I was invited to a conference as an esteemed delegate by the Government of Karnataka (Congress-ruled state) but the Centre refused me entry. All my documents were valid & current (UK passport & OCI).”
She backed her claims by sharing images of the invitation from the Karnataka government and other conference-related communications.
According to Professor Kaul, immigration officials cited “orders from Delhi” as the reason for her denial, despite her travel arrangements being made by Karnataka and possessing an official letter. She mentioned that unofficially, authorities hinted at her criticism of the RSS (Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh) in the past as a potential cause for her entry denial.
However, the Karnataka BJP labelled Professor Kaul as an “anti-India element” and a member of a ‘Break India Brigade’. The BJP accused the Congress government of jeopardising the unity and integrity of India by inviting Kaul.
They labelled her a “Pakistani sympathiser” and said that Karnataka was being used as a testing ground for “divisive agendas” by the Congress.
