आयआयटी मुंबई विद्यार्थी आत्महत्या प्रकरण: वडिलांचा उपोषणाचा इशारा;...
आयआयटी मुंबईतील द्वितीय वर्ष बी.टेकचा विद्यार्थी साहिल वाकोडे याच्या आत्महत्येनंतर, एफआयआरमध्ये नाव असलेल्या अधिकाऱ्यांना अटक न केल्यास आमरण उपोषण सुरू...
By GT24x7 Reporter··GlobalToday24x7
Tensions escalated surrounding the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay on Wednesday following the death by suicide of 20-year-old student Sahil Wakode, with his father issuing an ultimatum warning of an indefinite hunger strike unless law enforcement authorities execute immediate arrests. Ravindra Wakode, who traveled to Mumbai from Yavatmal, met investigators from the Mumbai Police Crime Branch and declared outside the premier institution's Powai campus that he would initiate the fast if the faculty members named in the First Information Report (FIR) remain at large.
The development arrives as the institute’s administrative leadership moves to balance disciplinary procedures, institutional accountability, and student demonstrations. In an official intervention on Wednesday, the IIT-Bombay Board of Governors announced the constitution of a 10-member high-level fact-finding committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding Wakode’s demise, simultaneously directing Professor Suryanarayana Doolla—who faces charges of abetment and caste-based discrimination—to proceed on leave to facilitate an impartial probe.
High-Level Inquiry Committee and Administrative Moves
The 10-member internal committee has been instructed by the Board of Governors to complete its comprehensive inquiry and submit a detailed report within seven calendar days. The panel is chaired by Professor Ramesh Venkateswaran, Chairman of the Board of Governors at IIT-Palakkad. Its composition includes external administrative, legal, and medical figures alongside internal faculty and student representatives.
Prominent members appointed to the committee include retired IAS officer Vishwanath Giriraj, psychiatrist Dr. Harish Shetty, and former institute vigilance officer Professor K.G. Suresh from the Department of Physics. Representation from IIT-Bombay’s academic staff comprises Professor K. Narayanan (School of Humanities and Social Sciences), Professor Sandip Kumar Saha (Department of Mechanical Engineering and convener of the SC/ST Cell), and Assistant Professor Deepti Kalsi (Department of Chemistry). Additionally, the body includes three student delegates: General Secretary of Hostel Affairs Aditya Joshi, Student Mentor Programme coordinator Dev Arora, and research scholar Devi Lal. Administrative officials confirmed that the panel's structure has been submitted to the Union Ministry of Education for regulatory concurrence.
Competing Narratives Over Examination Protocols
The administrative escalation stems from an incident that occurred during a mid-semester examination on September 18, hours before Wakode was found dead in his hostel room. Professor Doolla, acting as course instructor and invigilator, reportedly observed Wakode possessing a smartphone inside the examination venue, alleging that the student attempted to upload test materials onto an artificial intelligence platform. The instructor confiscated the device and reported the suspected examination malpractice to the academic administration.
A deep divergence persists between accounts provided by the deceased student's family and the institutional administration. In statements given to investigators, Wakode’s parents alleged that the instructor removed the student from the hall, subjected him to severe verbal reprimands, threatened academic suspension, and exhibited casteist hostility—assertions that prompted charges under the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act alongside Section 108 of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita. Conversely, institutional statements maintained that the student received immediate counseling from academic supervisors and had been reassured that standard procedural reviews would not arbitrarily terminate his academic progression.
Campus Polarization and Faculty Solidarity
The incident has divided sentiments across the technical institute and national academic networks. While student groups held peaceful marches demanding structural ac...