Deportation of Hindi scholar no healthy sign

Signals emanating from the deportation of British scholar Francesca Orsini, a professor emerita at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) in London, are not positive for those who cherish freedom of expression and atr concerned about the future of democracy here.

Orsini was deported from Delhi’s Indira Gandhi International Airport on October 20 despite having a tourist e-visa with validity for five years. Orsini is reported to have visited India as recently as October 2024.

She was reportedly on the blacklist consequent to being barred from entering India due to violation of visa rules during her previous visit. Prof. Francesca primarily works with Hindi and Urdu materials and is engaged in exploring how multilingualism works.

She continues to work on the literary culture of South Asia and is a celebrated author with wide recognition in Hindi literary circles. There was hardly any scope for her work being misunderstood and causing any threat to India’s security.

She was found to have violated the visa rules during her previous visits by engaging herself in research work and intellectual discussions. The reason cited for deportation was that such activity violated the conditions for the visa.

It is apparent that the authorities have used it only as an excuse as several such visitors entering India on tourist or trade visa have issued political statements praising India which could also be interpreted as inconsistent with the terms of the visa.

A nation of India’s size and diversity should be liberal in welcoming scholars, scientists and intellectuals and should spare a thought over the fallout of such restrictions. As for Prof. Orsini, the authorities should have been more than liberal as her work pertains to languages native to India and is deeply intertwined with India’s ethos, history and culture.

Even if her work is critical of certain aspects of India’s policies, a nation of our stature should have the capacity to counter them. Even otherwise, fencing off borders against their entry or banning their works will be of little use as the literary world today is border less and thoughts and ideas flow seamlessly around the universe.