Delhi HC seeks Centre’s response on U.K. academic Nitasha Kaul’s plea against entry ban

The Delhi High Court on Wednesday (November 26, 2025) asked the Union government to respond to a plea filed by Indian-born British academic Nitasha Kaul, challenging the decision to blacklist her from entering India and cancelling her Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) status.

Justice Sachin Datta issued notice on the application filed by Ms. Kaul, who is a professor of International Relations at the University of Westminster, seeking interim relief to travel to India for three weeks to tend to her aged and ailing mother.

Ms. Kaul, who has roots in the Kashmiri Pandit community, studied in Delhi University and has written about Kashmir, nationalism, and Hindutva. She testified about human rights in Kashmir before the U.S. House Committee on Foreign Affairs after the Union government abrogated the special status of Jammu and Kashmir.

Also Read | 194 OCI registrations cancelled under citizenship law since 2014: RTI

‘Anti-India activities’

Despite having a valid U.K. passport and an OCI card, Ms. Kaul said she had been denied entry at Bengaluru airport and deported after being held for about 24 hours in a cell in February 2024. She was visiting Bengaluru on the Karnataka government’s invitation to attend a conference titled, Constitution and National Unity.

Over a year later, in May 2025, the Indian government revoked her OCI status and accused her of “anti-India” activities.

In her petition, Ms. Kaul said that she has been repeatedly targeted for her critical academic writings and public engagement. She added that the Central government’s orders violate the principles of natural justice and her constitutional and statutory rights.

“The Petitioner is being prevented from visiting her elderly mother, aged 72 years, who resides in New Delhi and has longstanding health issues as a survivor of an auto-immune condition and having undergone two heart surgeries, disabling her from undertaking long travel; and other family members, by virtue of the illegal actions taken against her by the Respondents. The Respondents’ actions smack of arbitrariness and high-handedness, reflecting an utter disregard for the Rule of Law in a free and democratic society,” the plea adds.