India joins Ukraine, West Bank in ‘severely restricted’ academic freedom category; ranks above China - The Indian Express
Academic freedom in India is “severely restricted”, with increased government involvement in higher education affecting university governance, appointments and campus expression, according to a report by Scholars at Risk, an international network that monitors attacks on higher education.
The report, titled ‘Free to Think 2026’, documented 382 attacks on higher education communities across 59 countries and territories between July 1, 2025, and June 30, 2026. It also examined what it described as government efforts in several countries to limit dissent and increase political control over higher education.
The 2026 Academic Freedom Index (AFI), cited in the report, found that academic freedom had declined significantly in 50 of 179 countries analysed over the past decade. Nine countries recorded improvements during the same period.
India was among six countries and territories placed in the report’s “severely restricted” category, along with Hong Kong, Indonesia, Pakistan, the West Bank and Ukraine. The lowest category, “completely restricted”, included Afghanistan, China, Iran, Russia, Turkiye, Syria, Venezuela, Zimbabwe and Gaza.
On India, the report said the Central government had expanded its role in higher education, including in university governance, leadership appointments and academic priorities. It said university administrations had taken measures affecting campus discourse, including dismissals of faculty members, cancellation of academic events and policies restricting student expression.
“Both students and police committed acts of violence at protests or other campus gatherings. Academic freedom was ‘severely restricted’ in 2026,” the report said.
The report also referred to the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) and said the University Grants Commission (UGC) had been used as a “primary vehicle for state influence” over higher education.
It cited recent UGC policy changes that, according to the report, have been viewed as increasing government influence over universities. These included changes to academic qualification requirements for vice-chancellors and the removal of a 10 per cent cap on non-permanent, contract faculty.
AFI data cited in the report shows India’s score falling from 0.38 in 2022 to 0.14 in 2025. The report, however, noted that declines in academic freedom were recorded across several countries. In the US, for instance, the institutional autonomy score fell from 3.3 in 2019 to 1.7 in 2025, including a decline from 2.4 in 2024.
Note: India’s comparison score in this index is 0.14. While some countries like Turkiye or Tajikistan have a slightly higher point score, they are placed below India because their index values fell significantly into the bottom quintile over the 2015-2025 period.
The report also cited individual cases involving faculty members in India. One such case was the termination of South Asian University professor Snehashish Bhattacharya in 2025 for what the university described as “misconduct against university interests”.
Bhattacharya and 14 other faculty members had signed a November 2022 letter raising concerns about the university’s handling of student protests in October that year.
Another case cited was that of Lora Santhakumar, an assistant professor at SRM Institute of Science and Technology in Tamil Nadu. The report said she was dismissed in 2025 following a social media post on Indian military action in Pakistan.
On May 7, 2025, Santhakumar posted a series of WhatsApp status updates opposing calls for war, including one that said: “Say NO to war. And don’t be afraid to say so, even if it is not the popular opinion.” The report said her phone number and photograph subsequently circulated on social media, followed by online abuse and death threats. The university suspended her on May 8 and terminated her services on December 9, 2025.
The report said universities in India had cited the content of events or statements by invited speakers when cancelling academic programmes. It also highlighted student protesters had faced pressure from university authorities, police and opposing student groups.
“Policy shifts, academic decisions and debates about national identity, caste, religion and historical interpretation led to student protests,” the report said. It added that some demonstrations resulted in clashes between opposing student groups.
The report further said actions by national and state government actors had affected freedom of research, teaching and publication.
It cited a March 11, 2026, Supreme Court order that it described as imposing a “life ban” on three academics from receiving public funding for curriculum development.
The case involved three scholars who had worked with the National Council of Educational Research and Training (NCERT) on a Class 8 social science textbook. The report said the textbook contained a section that the court considered to “project a negative image” of the judiciary.
