After her entire speech was dedicated towards anti-Israel sentiments, MIT banned Megha Vemuri and her family to be present at her graduation. The student body president’s speech has heads turning and eyebrows raised as netizens from India questioned her ignorance of the Pahalgam terror attack ,that killed 26 people, in her speech.

Making headlines for her “antisemitic” agendas, she showed solidarity with the Palestinians with her message a keffiyeh, a symbol of solidarity. This has netizens questioning “After the massacre of innocent Hindus in Pahalgam, where was this fresh MIT graduate, ‘Megha M. Vemuri‘?”

Accused of misusing her platform, Vemuri spoke strongly criticising the actions in Gaza and humanitarian crisis at hand. Netizens across social media are trolling her words and questioning her loyalty towards her roots. Labels like “woke liberals” were shared.

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A user commented “When Indian-origin students like Megha Vemuri cry for Palestine but stay silent on attacks in Pahalgam or Kashmir, it shows where their loyalties really lie. They enjoy India’s roots but spit on its soil.” However, many have defended her due to her American upbringing, while some have called her claims polarised and biased.

Megha Vemuri’s remarks

Vemuri addressed her classmates with an unflinching call for justice. “You showed the world that MIT wants a free Palestine,” she said, referencing student-led efforts urging the university to sever connections with the Israeli military. She didn’t shy away from criticising her own institution, accusing MIT of subjecting student activists to “threats, intimidation and suppression.” She added, “Right now, while we prepare to graduate and move forward with our lives, there are no universities left in Gaza,” to point the contrast between peers of her age in Gaza and the celebratory mood in MIT.

However, this is not an incident specific to MIT, multiple students have expressed their pro-Palestinian remarks in Harvard graduation speeches and have thus been either denied their diploma or otherwise reprimanded.