IIT Bombay Meets Protesters Over 18 Demands As Campus Suicide Row Escalates

The matter is heating up as both sides - the protesters and the administration - have taken strong positions about who was responsible for the tragedy

21 Sep 2026, 04:40 · NDTV

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IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode died by suicide after being caught using phone during exam
Faculty forum supports invigilator who followed protocol on phone use during mid-semester exam
Protesters allege institutional harassment and caste discrimination caused the student’s death

How does IIT Bombay plan to prevent future suicides?
Mumbai:

The IIT Bombay authorities and protesting students and parents appear headed for a standoff today over the death by suicide of 22-year-old student, Sahil Ravindra Wakode. There is also hope of a resolution after IIT Bombay Director Shirish Kedar signed on a sheet containing 18 demands of the protesting students. The institute is expected to make an announcement today.

Wakode was found dead on Friday last in his hostel room on the IIT Bombay campus, hours after he was allegedly caught using a mobile phone and ChatGPT during a mid-semester examination.

The matter is heating up as both sides - the protesters and the administration - have taken strong positions about who was responsible for the tragedy.

The IIT Bombay Faculty Forum has expressed solidarity with exam invigilator Suryanarayana Doolla, pointing out that he was following institutional protocol after discovering the student was in "unauthorised possession and use of a smartphone."

The forum also expressed grief over the student's death and sent condolences to the family of the second-year BTech student who was from Maharashtra's Yavatmal.

The protesters and the student's family, however, have alleged Wakode was subjected to institutional harassment and caste-based discrimination on campus, due to which he died by suicide.

A screenshot of a message being circulated among protesters

On Sunday night, the IIT Bombay administration met the protesting students to look into their 18 demands that includes ensuring student representation in academic committees, independent investigation into four cases of death by suicide on campus and mental health workshops for professors, among other demands.

A formal announcement on the demands is likely to come today, people familiar with the matter said.

Despite the late-night meeting, the protesters have said they would gather at the IIT Bombay main gate today under the banner of 'India Against Casteism'. They raised the issue of other deaths by suicide in the past under circumstances allegedly linked to casteism. "We are not here to die," the protesters said as their main slogan.

The faculty forum has cited the institute's prescribed procedure under which the professor reported the incident to the authorities concerned for action. It said the student was found carrying and using an unauthorised smartphone during the examination.

The professor had only carried out his academic responsibilities and followed the procedure, it said, and expressed concern over the statements against the professor that have affected him deeply.

The student's parents have filed a case under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, 1989, alleging discrimination.

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