'Why go to another country...?': Mohandas Pai rips into India's blind US obsession

Amid rising deportations and a crackdown on foreign students in the United States, former Infosys CFO Mohandas Pai has called attention to opportunities in India, questioning the need to seek uncertain futures abroad. 

"Why go to another country only to be ill treated and deported? India offers great opportunities," Pai posted on X.

His remarks come as the U.S. administration tightens its stance on foreign nationals involved in pro-Palestinian activism. Stephen Miller, former White House Deputy Chief of Staff and Homeland Security Advisor to President Donald Trump, warned: "No one has the ‘right’ to a visa or a green card. If you support terrorism we don’t want you here."

The recent arrest of Mahmoud Khalil, a Columbia University graduate student accused of supporting Hamas during campus protests, has spotlighted this approach. Though a New York judge temporarily halted his deportation, officials have cited national security concerns. The Department of Homeland Security confirmed Khalil’s arrest was linked to "activities aligned to Hamas, a designated terrorist organization."

Miller reinforced the administration’s position on X, stating: "Vast numbers of foreign nationals who support terrorism and reject American values have been awarded visas. Revoking them is a national security imperative."

President Trump echoed the sentiment, posting: "ICE proudly apprehended and detained Mahmoud Khalil, a Radical Foreign Pro-Hamas Student on the campus of @Columbia University. This is the first arrest of many to come."

Against this backdrop, Pai highlighted the story of Davinder Singh, a farmer from Punjab who returned to India after repeated U.S. visa rejections. Singh went on to build a successful exotic vegetable farming business, earning between ₹8 and 10 lakh per acre on his 5-acre farm. "In 1992, I wanted to go to the US just like my brother and friends. For two years, I knocked on the doors of travel agents, but my visa was rejected every time. Maybe Waheguru had other plans for me," Singh reflected.