protests continued at IIT-Bombay’s Powai campus
MUMBAI: The death of 20-year-old IIT-Bombay student Sahil Wakode has triggered a police investigation, protests on the Powai campus and a dispute over what happened in the hours before his death. The number of protesters rose to around 6,000 within a few hours, while about 150 police personnel from several police stations were deployed on the campus. The administration discussed an 18-point charter submitted by the students and signed it.
The forum also described Wakode’s unauthorised possession and use of a smartphone during the examination as academic malpractice and said Doolla had reported the matter according to the prescribed procedure.
IIT-Bombay said in an initial statement that he had allegedly uploaded the examination question paper on an AI platform to seek answers. The institute said no disciplinary action had been initiated against him. It said the matter was discussed with him by the course instructor and head of the department, who counselled him and assured him that the incident would not adversely affect his academic career. No suicide note was found, according to police. Ravindra alleged that his son had told him about facing harassment from professor Suryanarayana Doolla for around three months after entering his second year. The institute said he was counselled by the instructor and department head and was assured that the incident would not adversely affect his academic career. The institute’s SC/ST cell said it had not received any complaint from Wakode alleging caste discrimination. His father said he would not conduct the final rites until the accused were arrested. Police said the Crime Branch had taken over the investigation and that investigators would examine CCTV footage and Wakode’s seized phone. No arrest had been made by Sunday, according to TOI. The forum expressed solidarity with the professor and said he had been performing his duties in accordance with the institute’s Senate-approved academic policies. An institute official, however, said discussions would continue and due process would be followed. The institute said the details and circumstances leading to the incident remained subject to investigation and acknowledged that it was inappropriate to characterise the events preceding Wakode’s death before they had been established through the investigative process. The apology came after students accused the institute of “defaming” Wakode by publicly mentioning details about his alleged use of an AI platform before a proper inquiry.
He had been caught using a mobile phone during an examination held between 2pm and 4pm. Students, however, later alleged that Wakode had been threatened with suspension. Hostel residents alerted authorities after he did not respond. Police initially registered an accidental death report. Doolla, a senior professor in the Energy Science department and the invigilator during the examination in which Wakode was caught with the phone, was named in the FIR along with other senior officials and officials concerned. Police also invoked provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act following the family’s complaint alleging casteist remarks. Director Shireesh Kedare also denied caste-based discrimination at the institute, saying caste-related information of students was confidential and not available to faculty or administrators. As the standoff continued, senior police officers reached the hospital and assured the family that action would be taken on their complaint. The body was finally claimed around 9pm after the case was transferred to the Mumbai Police Crime Branch. An ACP-rank officer was assigned to investigate the case. Students attempted to move towards Adi Shankaracharya Marg, prompting police to barricade campus exit gates. As the protests continued, IIT-Bombay’s Faculty Forum issued a statement backing Doolla. Doolla, who had been serving as dean of administrative affairs, will continue as a professor and as head of the Department of Energy Science and Engineering.
The case has since been transferred to the Mumbai Police Crime Branch, while IIT-Bombay on Monday apologised for its earlier communication about the circumstances surrounding Wakode’s death and suspended professor Suryanarayana Doolla from his deanship. Here is what has happened so far: Wakode, a second-year BTech student in the Energy Science and Engineering department, was found dead in his hostel room on Friday evening. The death triggered protests on the campus on Friday night, with students demanding accountability and stronger mental-health support. Wakode’s parents, Ravindra and Sonali, reached the IIT-Bombay campus on Saturday and alleged that their son had faced caste-based harassment and institutional torture. Later on Saturday, Powai police registered an abetment of suicide case following the family’s complaint. On Sunday night, IIT-Bombay director Shireesh Kedare held a nearly three-hour meeting with protesting students at the institute’s main gate. The major development came on Monday when IIT-Bombay suspended professor Suryanarayana Doolla from his administrative post with immediate effect.
There were therefore conflicting accounts of what happened after Wakode was caught with the phone: students and his family alleged that he was threatened with suspension, while the institute said no disciplinary action had been initiated. The family, however, had not lodged a complaint with the institute at the time. The parents demanded action against those they held responsible and sought a probe into their son’s death. Students also continued their protests, while the mid-semester examination scheduled for Saturday was postponed.
Wakode’s family then took his body to his native Yavatmal after the post-mortem, and his final rites were performed there on Sunday.
Students also sought changes in the handling of academic malpractice cases, stronger counselling facilities, at least one counsellor for every 250 students, a 24/7 psychiatrist at the IIT-Bombay Hospital, better emergency medical services and mental-health sensitisation for faculty and staff. A second-year student died by suicide in February, while another 20-year-old second-year BTech student died by suicide in July. TOI reported that this was possibly the first instance of an IIT-Bombay professor being named as an accused in an abetment of suicide case involving a student. Wakode’s death was the third reported suicide at IIT-Bombay’s Powai campus this year. TOI subsequently reported that the first batch of wall-mounted fans had arrived, but installation had not yet begun. You Can Also Check: Gold Rate in Mumbai | Silver Rate in Mumbai | Bank Holidays in Mumbai | Public Holidays in Mumbai | Mumbai AQI | Weather in Mumbai | Petrol Price in Mumbai | Diesel Price in Mumbai | CNG Price in Mumbai | LPG Price in Mumbai Stay updated with the latest Mumbai news.
IIT-Bombay said it would cooperate with the investigation and appealed to people to refrain from speculation while the probe was under way. One of the demands said the director, dean academic programmes and dean student affairs should resign if specified demands were not implemented within a month. The institute said any further action against him would be taken following the investigation.
Amid the allegations, IIT-Bombay maintained that no disciplinary action had been initiated against Wakode after he was found with the phone. Wakode’s parents refused to claim his body from the post-mortem centre at Rajawadi Hospital for more than seven hours. Meanwhile, protests continued at IIT-Bombay’s Powai campus. They also demanded a student concerns portal, a student-wellbeing task force and an assurance that students participating in the protests would not face disciplinary, hostel, financial or legal action. IIT-Bombay also clarified that reports claiming director Shireesh Kedare had resigned were false. Following the July death, IIT-Bombay had discussed replacing ceiling fans in hostels with wall-mounted fans as a safety measure. The protests may have put the questions on the table. The Crime Branch probe will now have to establish the answers through evidence. Download the TOI App.
The demands included immediate suspension of Doolla, an independent investigation into Wakode’s death, action against anyone found responsible, an apology over the institute’s earlier communication about Wakode, greater student representation and a mechanism for complaints against professors. On Monday, IIT-Bombay apologised for statements made in its earlier communication about the circumstances surrounding Wakode’s death.