UK-Based Hindi Scholar Francesca Orsini Deported from India Citing Visa Violations

Francesca Orsini, a UK-based scholar of Hindi literature and Professor Emerita at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS), University of London, was denied entry into India and deported to Hong Kong on Monday, 20 October 2025, over alleged visa violations.

According to officials cited by the Ministry of Home Affairs, Orsini had been placed on India’s immigration blacklist in March 2025 for breaching visa conditions. She arrived at Delhi's Indira Gandhi International Airport from Hong Kong after attending an academic conference in China. She was deported back to Hong Kong, where she has to make further arrangements,

“She was on a tourist visa but violating visa conditions. This is standard global practice; anyone found violating visa norms can be blacklisted,” a government source said. Officials confirmed that she was deported within hours of arrival after her purpose of visit was found to be inconsistent with the visa category.

Orsini, however, told airport officials that she held a valid five-year visa and was entering India to meet friends. She last visited India in October 2024, when she had also travelled on a tourist visa. Officials said that during that visit she participated in academic engagements, including speaking at a university and conducting research, which was treated as a violation of her visa terms.

See Also: Hindi should be the language of science, justice, police: HM Amit Shah

Orsini, who is of Italian origin, did not contact the Italian Embassy in New Delhi after being informed of the deportation order, according to diplomatic sources. The embassy did not issue any official comment on the incident.

A respected scholar of Indian and multilingual literary traditions, Orsini is the author of The Hindi Public Sphere: 1920–1940 and has taught at SOAS for decades. Her academic background includes a degree in Hindi from Venice University, followed by studies at the Central Institute of Hindi and Jawaharlal Nehru University in Delhi. According to her SOAS biography, she is currently completing a book on the literary history of Awadh and leads an ongoing European Research Council-funded project, “Multilingual Locals and Significant Geographies,” which explores world literature through regional and multilingual perspectives.

The deportation has drawn criticism from several Indian historians and writers. Ramachandra called Orsini “a great scholar of Indian literature, whose work has richly illuminated our understanding of our own cultural heritage.” Writing on X, he said deporting her “without reason is the mark of a government that is insecure, paranoid, and even stupid.”

Historian and writer Mukul Kesavan also criticised the move, calling it an example of “visceral hostility” towards scholarship. “A government ideologically committed to Hindi has banned Francesca Orsini. You can’t make this up,” he wrote.

The episode has drawn comparisons with that of British academic Nitasha Kaul, who was denied entry into India in February 2024 while invited to a government event in Karnataka. Kaul, a professor at the University of Westminster, later had her Overseas Citizen of India (OCI) card revoked in May over what authorities described as anti-India activities.

Francesca Orsini’s deportation has reignited debate over India’s visa policies for foreign academics, with officials citing violations of visa terms and critics pointing to the country’s growing scrutiny of scholars and researchers. [Rh/Eth/DS]

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