TOI correspondent from Washington: Under attack from Indian activists for purportedly bankrolling a " Pakistan conference " at Harvard University in the aftermath of the Pahalgam terrorist attack, the Mittal family , whose $25 million donation funds the South Asia Institute (SAI) that platformed the event, clarified on Wednesday that the event was scheduled "without consulting its benefactors."
A spokesperson for the family drew attention to a statement from the SAI that it "did not consult any benefactor of the Institute about this conference" and Pakistani students at Harvard, along with their faculty advisor, "independently determined the topics and speakers presenting."
"The Institute also supports the annual student-run India Conference at Harvard, which this year was held on February 15-16. In the case of the India Conference also, we do not consult any benefactors; the student organizers, along with their advisors, independently determine the topics and speakers," the statement by the Institute, funded by the Mittal Family Foundation, said.
"Please know that we share the grief and anguish with our friends, colleagues, and loved ones in India who have been affected by the attack in Pahalgam on April 22, 2025, and we offer our heartfelt condolences," it added.
Both the institute and its benefactor, Indian steel magnate Laxmi Mittal , whose family foundation's $ 25 million gift established the SAI in 2017, are being pilloried on social media and by Indian students at Harvard for being "tone deaf" in hosting such a conference against the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror attack.
While the Institute says its mission is to foster academic dialogue across South Asia, including Pakistan, through interdisciplinary research on topics like economics and governance, Indian supporters say it was a particularly insensitive time to host such a conference and platform Pakistani officials and delegates.
Pakistan's finance minister Mohammed Aurangazeb and the country's ambassador to the US were among those who spoke at the conference.
"At a time when the Indian government is leaving no stone unturned to pressurise the Pakistan government to relinquish its support for terror, Lakshmi Mittal's sponsorship of the 'Pakistan Conference at Harvard 2025' is not only tone-deaf, but it reflects a deep sense of betrayal by the Indian steel magnate towards the innocent Indian tourists who lost their lives in Pahalgam at the hands of Pakistan-trained terrorists," one commentator wrote.
Pakistani delegates however contested the claim that the Mittal family sponsored the event, saying it was funded by National Foods, a Pakistani food products company, whose CEO Abrar Hassan also spoke at the conference. Along with National Foods, the conference website lists "The Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute" as one of the "partners" to the conference.
As part of its interdisciplinary, cross-country dialogue, the Institute is currently hosting Naiza Khan, an acclaimed visual artist from Pakistan, as its second Distinguished Artist Fellow. “It will be an extraordinary honor to have such an accomplished artist with us at the Mittal Institute. It will provide a wonderful opportunity for students and faculty alike to interact and engage with one of the most celebrated artists working in South Asia today,” Hitesh Hathi, Executive Director of the Mittal Institute, said in an announcement about the fellowship that began this month.
Some activists are now pressing for an end to such "freebies" for Pakistan while excluding other countries like Sri Lanka and Nepal, and for the center to be renamed after India. "South Asia" is a familiar bugaboo for India partisans who have long had an issue with what they say is an artificial geographic construct that dilutes India's equity.
A spokesperson for the family drew attention to a statement from the SAI that it "did not consult any benefactor of the Institute about this conference" and Pakistani students at Harvard, along with their faculty advisor, "independently determined the topics and speakers presenting."
"The Institute also supports the annual student-run India Conference at Harvard, which this year was held on February 15-16. In the case of the India Conference also, we do not consult any benefactors; the student organizers, along with their advisors, independently determine the topics and speakers," the statement by the Institute, funded by the Mittal Family Foundation, said.
"Please know that we share the grief and anguish with our friends, colleagues, and loved ones in India who have been affected by the attack in Pahalgam on April 22, 2025, and we offer our heartfelt condolences," it added.
Both the institute and its benefactor, Indian steel magnate Laxmi Mittal , whose family foundation's $ 25 million gift established the SAI in 2017, are being pilloried on social media and by Indian students at Harvard for being "tone deaf" in hosting such a conference against the backdrop of the Pahalgam terror attack.
While the Institute says its mission is to foster academic dialogue across South Asia, including Pakistan, through interdisciplinary research on topics like economics and governance, Indian supporters say it was a particularly insensitive time to host such a conference and platform Pakistani officials and delegates.
Pakistan's finance minister Mohammed Aurangazeb and the country's ambassador to the US were among those who spoke at the conference.
"At a time when the Indian government is leaving no stone unturned to pressurise the Pakistan government to relinquish its support for terror, Lakshmi Mittal's sponsorship of the 'Pakistan Conference at Harvard 2025' is not only tone-deaf, but it reflects a deep sense of betrayal by the Indian steel magnate towards the innocent Indian tourists who lost their lives in Pahalgam at the hands of Pakistan-trained terrorists," one commentator wrote.
Pakistani delegates however contested the claim that the Mittal family sponsored the event, saying it was funded by National Foods, a Pakistani food products company, whose CEO Abrar Hassan also spoke at the conference. Along with National Foods, the conference website lists "The Lakshmi Mittal and Family South Asia Institute" as one of the "partners" to the conference.
As part of its interdisciplinary, cross-country dialogue, the Institute is currently hosting Naiza Khan, an acclaimed visual artist from Pakistan, as its second Distinguished Artist Fellow. “It will be an extraordinary honor to have such an accomplished artist with us at the Mittal Institute. It will provide a wonderful opportunity for students and faculty alike to interact and engage with one of the most celebrated artists working in South Asia today,” Hitesh Hathi, Executive Director of the Mittal Institute, said in an announcement about the fellowship that began this month.
Some activists are now pressing for an end to such "freebies" for Pakistan while excluding other countries like Sri Lanka and Nepal, and for the center to be renamed after India. "South Asia" is a familiar bugaboo for India partisans who have long had an issue with what they say is an artificial geographic construct that dilutes India's equity.
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