WASHINGTON: Senior US Justice Department official Harmeet Dhillon, who oversaw investigations into universities, voter rolls and alleged violations of religious freedom, tendered her resignation on Thursday.

Dhillon is one of the first high-ranking departures from the Trump administration following the Republican Party’s defeat in midterm elections.

“She has defended the civil liberties of every American and enforced the law without fear or favour,” Attorney General Todd Blanche said.

Dhillon, a Trump ally, oversaw a broad overhaul of the Justice Department’s civil rights unit, shifting its focus from combating discrimination against racial minorities and investigating local police to Trump priorities around gun rights and combating antisemitism on college campuses.

Dhillon played a leading role in the Trump administration’s investigations of elite US universities.

Dhillon had previously told a magazine that she wanted to return to her law firm, Dhillon Law Group, after leaving the Justice Department. Her firm had recently shrunk as some attorneys left for other practices.

Two people familiar with the matter said Dhillon was frustrated that she had been passed over for promotion in the department and wanted to return to her firm to reinvigorate it.

Published in Dawn, November 6th, 2026