Indian graduates protest Wipro’s Israel ties during convocation
Convocation protest exposes contradiction between Azim Premji’s philanthropy and Wipro’s collaboration with Israeli institutions
NEW DELHI, India (MNTV) — Graduating students at one of India’s most prominent private universities turned their convocation into a protest against their own benefactor — condemning Wipro Ltd, the technology conglomerate owned by billionaire philanthropist Azim Premji, for its ongoing collaborations with Israeli institutions amid the war on Gaza.
Wearing stickers that read “End ties between Wipro and Tel Aviv” and holding placards that said “Stop funding genocide,” students at Azim Premji University (APU) denounced what they called a moral contradiction at the heart of the institution — that the university founded on social justice values continues to be financed by a company accused of complicity in Israel’s crimes against Palestinians.
According to Maktoob Media, the protesters said Wipro’s partnership with Ramot, the technology-transfer arm of Tel Aviv University (TAU), made the company complicit in Israel’s occupation and military aggression.
The Azim Premji Foundation, which owns around 66 percent of Wipro’s shares, also funds APU — creating what students described as a direct link between their education and Wipro’s profits from collaborations with Israel.
In a statement, the graduating class of 2025 declared, “We condemn the Israeli state and all organisations that support this genocide.” Students said they chose convocation day to expose the “hypocrisy” of celebrating justice and equity under the banner of an institution backed by a company engaged with Israel.
Some faculty members reportedly objected to the protest, but students continued their silent demonstration throughout the ceremony. Organisers said they aimed to force a conversation on the ethical responsibility of Indian corporations and universities tied to Israel’s defence and tech sectors.
Rights groups have criticised Wipro’s collaborations with Israeli institutions in areas such as artificial intelligence, cybersecurity, and digital infrastructure — technologies that observers say underpin Israel’s surveillance and military systems in Gaza and the occupied West Bank.
The protest adds India’s academic community to a growing global wave of student dissent calling for corporate and institutional divestment from Israel.
Analysts say such actions signal a shift in India’s public conscience, even as Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s government continues to deepen its defence and technology partnerships with Tel Aviv.
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