Academics, Citizens Condemn Termination of SRM Institute of Science and Technology Faculty Santhakumar
31 December 2025 | The Wire
A group of academics and concerned citizens has issued a statement condemning the termination of Lora Santhakumar, an assistant professor at the SRM Institute of Science and Technology (SRMIST) in Chennai, describing the action as a failure of the institute’s administration to “protect their faculty against baseless accusations and uphold academic freedoms”.
The statement notes that Santhakumar was a faculty member at SRMIST for close to a decade before she was suspended on May 8. The suspension followed a WhatsApp status she posted in her “personal capacity”, expressing opposition to the celebration of killings during a border skirmish and noting that the victims of such violence are often innocent and vulnerable people, including children, the signatories mention.