Day after Harvard awarded Ibrahim Bharmal who assaulted a Jew, Trump announces removal of Harvard’s tax exempt status: Read why US President and Ivy League University are at odds

On 2nd May (local time), United States President Donald Trump announced that his government would take away Harvard University’s tax-exempt status. In a post on the social media platform Truth Social, Trump said, “We are going to be taking away Harvard’s Tax Exempt Status. It’s what they deserve!”

The strong message from the US President came a day after Harvard Law Review awarded a $65,000 fellowship to Ibrahim Bharmal, a university student who assaulted a Jewish student in 2023 during an anti-Israel protest.

Earlier, on 15th April, Trump hinted his administration might take away the tax-exempt status of the university if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist-inspired/supporting sickness. He had said, “Perhaps Harvard should lose its Tax Exempt Status and be Taxed as a Political Entity if it keeps pushing political, ideological, and terrorist inspired/supporting ‘Sickness?’ Remember, Tax Exempt Status is totally contingent on acting in the PUBLIC INTEREST!”

Harvard had already sued the Trump administration in March this year over its decision to freeze federal funding. The suit, according to the Wall Street Journal, argued that the government had violated the university’s constitutional rights and imperiled its academic independence by freezing the funding.

Notably, the funding was frozen as, according to the Trump administration, Harvard and other universities failed to adequately protect Jewish students during anti-Israel and pro-Hamas (posed as pro-Palestine) protests on the campuses.

Speaking to the WSJ, the university’s president, Alan Garber, claimed that Trump’s move to remove tax-exempt status would be “highly illegal”. He said, “Trump’s decision to revoke the school’s tax-exempt status is highly illegal, unless there is some reasoning that we have not been exposed to that would justify this dramatic move. Tax-exempt status is granted to educational institutions to enable them to successfully carry out their mission of education, and for research universities, of research.”

Garber added that in case the university loses its tax-exempt status, it would deeply damage Harvard. He added, “Obviously, we would be severely impaired if we were to lose our tax-exempt status. And I should add, it would be destructive to Harvard, but the message that it sends to the educational community would be a very dire one — which suggests that political disagreements could be used as a basis to pose what might be called an existential threat to so many educational institutions.”

Since Trump came to power for the second time as the US President, he has launched a nationwide crackdown against campus administrations that promoted antisemitism. On 11th April, the Trump administration recommended that Harvard University limit campus activism and stop antisemitism, as it is against American values. The government also recommended changes to its curriculum, including Middle Eastern Studies, Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion initiatives in various departments, and more.

Who is Ibrahim Bharmal

Ibrahim Bharmal is a Harvard student who, according to a blog post written by him on the university’s website, was raised in a close-knit immigrant and Muslim community in Southern California. He claimed that his community “survived” the wave of “Islamophobia” post 9/11. His aim to become a lawyer was to serve his community.

Bharmal was one of two students charged with assault and battery in May 2024 after they were seen assaulting Israeli Harvard Business School student Yoav Segev during the October 2023 die-in protest at HBS. The charges against him and Elom Tettey-Tamaklo, the second student charged with assault and battery, should have resulted in more than a year of jail time. However, on 28th April (local time), Boston Municipal Court judge Stephen W. McClenon ruled that Bharmal and Tettey-Tamaklo would not face trial.

The decision came despite the fact that the video of the assault had gained attention across the US. Segev was filming the protest when the duo approached him and blocked his camera. They escorted him away from the protest site. Segev was heard saying repeatedly, “Don’t touch me.”

Bharmal and his fellow accused pleaded “not guilty”. The court ruled that both of them would have to complete anger management programming, a Harvard course on negotiation, and 80 hours of community service. The District Attorney’s office had requested a court-mandated apology from the duo, but the court ruled against it.

According to Harvard Law Review’s website, the fellowship will support recent Harvard Law School graduates with a demonstrated interest in serving the public interest through their work and scholarship. Ibrahim will be able to spend a year working in a public interest-related role at a government agency or non-profit organisation.

Interestingly, Bharmal has chosen the California chapter of the Council on American-Islamic Relations, or CAIR, where he will serve for one year in “public interest”. For those who are unaware, CAIR is an Islamist outfit based in the US. It is known for its anti-India stance and has spoken against India and Hindus on several occasions. CAIR also has links with the Palestinian Islamic fundamentalist terror organisation Hamas, which is responsible for the deadly 7th October 2023 attack on Israel that claimed the lives of over 1,300 Israelis and foreigners, after which Israel launched a military operation against Hamas with the aim of wiping out the terrorist outfit completely. The Israel-Hamas war is still ongoing.

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