Achinthya Sivalingan, a student of Indian origin, was arrested along with others as part of the ongoing unrest on US campus and was subsequently banned from the area. Amidst pro-Palestine demonstrations, there were protests. According to a university spokesman, Achinthya Sivalingan, who was born in Coimbatore and reared in Columbus, is subject to disciplinary proceedings and may be banned from the university.
Early on Thursday morning, a student-led pro-Palestine encampment at McCosh Courtyard started the demonstration, which quickly got out of control when Princeton administration threatened to shut it down. The Daily Princetonian said, "After the initial arrests, students folded them away."
According to a statement sent out on campus on Wednesday morning by Vice President for Campus Life W. Rochelle Calhoun, if students don't stop, they will be arrested and will not be allowed to return. Reportedly, the sit-in, which started with perhaps a hundred undergraduate and graduate students, grew in support of national pro-Palestinian activities. The protesters are in favor of colleges removing their financial ties to organizations engaged in the Gaza conflict.
According to University spokesperson Jennifer Morrill, Princeton's response was lightning-fast, with Public Safety personnel apprehending Achinthya Sivalingan GS and Hassan Sayed GS in just a few minutes of the tent being set up. Public Safety officers did not use force, and arrests happened without resistance, according to Morrill, who emphasized that the institution followed the procedures laid out by Vice President for Campus Life W. Rochelle Calhoun. First-year PhD student Urvi, in reflection on the arrests, told PTI that the scenario was "violent," emphasizing the urgency placed on the expelled students. Urvi stated, "They were given less than five minutes to retrieve their belongings after being evicted from their homes."
The event has spurred discussion, with some expressing worries that protests could turn into antisemitic attacks, frightening Jewish students on campus. Princeton struggles to maintain campus safety while allowing free speech in the face of these conflicts.
