A Cornell University junior, Sumitra Pandit, was arrested on January 28 at her dorm room by campus police on charges of unlawful assembly and obstruction of government administration. The arrest stems from her participation in a September 2024 protest against weapons manufacturers Boeing and L3Harris at a university career fair held in the Statler Hotel.
Pandit, a student in the Industrial and Labor Relations program, described the arrest as distressing. “I found it deeply inappropriate and frightening that a male CUPD officer attempted to invite himself into my dorm room, alone, to question me,” Pandit stated. She reported being arrested while in sleepwear and alleged that the officer did not allow her privacy to change before instructing her to dress in front of him.
This incident follows a series of disciplinary actions related to the protest. Last semester, Cornell police arrested three other students for similar offenses, and the university issued 19 suspensions—academic and non-academic—against those accused of attending the protest.
Pandit and other students have criticized Cornell’s approach to protest discipline compared to its handling of gender-based violence cases on campus. In one case, a male student was charged with assault and trespassing after reportedly hiding under a female student’s bed. Another involved a fraternity where multiple males were accused of sexual assault and coercing a student to take ketamine. While Cornell suspended unnamed students involved in the fraternity incident, no disciplinary measures were announced regarding the trespassing case.
“As a woman on this campus, I think the fact that students protesting against weapons manufacturers get the same punishment as rapists is disturbing and unacceptable,” Pandit remarked.
Cornell administrators issued five public statements regarding the protest but remained largely silent on the incidents of gender-based violence. A single statement about the sexual assault incident was released nearly two weeks after national media coverage brought attention to the case. It was only on February 6, fifteen weeks after the assault was reported, that Cornell President Kotlikoff announced a task force on campus sexual assault. However, the task force’s recommendations will not be delivered until the summer of 2025.
Pandit is actively involved in campus organizations, including Progressives at Cornell and Students for Justice in Palestine, where she advocates for cultural education and student welfare projects. Her arrest has sparked broader discussions about campus safety, disciplinary equity, and student rights at the university.
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