Mumbai: The death of a student at the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay is likely to trigger a major political uproar in Maharashtra as the parents of the deceased launched a hunger strike at Azad Maidan in Mumbai on Thursday, seeking justice for their son. Seeking justice for their son, the couple- Ravindra and Sonali Wakode, alleged that their son had faced caste discrimination and harassment at the institute.
Sahil Wakode (22), a second-year BTech student at IIT Bombay, was found dead in his hostel room on the evening of September 18.
”Those who tortured my son should be put behind bars. He had told us that he repeatedly faced caste discrimination at the institute,” Ravindra said.
Before launching the hunger strike, Ravindra and his wife had met the chairman of the National Commission for Scheduled Castes in the city and submitted a memorandum, seeking speedy investigation into their son’s death.
Congress seeks arrest of IIT director, Prof Doolla
Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has spoken to Sahil’s parents and assured them of all help in their fight to seek justice for their son, party sources said. Police detained Congress MP Varsha Gaikwad, several workers of her party, and NSUI activists who gathered outside IIT Bombay to express solidarity with Sahil's family.
MP Gaikwad accused the ruling establishment of harming the education system and termed Sahil’s death an "institutional murder." She demanded a comprehensive probe into the circumstances surrounding his death. Students face humiliation and difficulties, especially if they belong to a particular caste or religion, she told reporters.
"This is not the first such incident at IIT. We want accountability," Gaikwad said, and accused the RSS of "infiltrating" higher education institutions. "The BJP and RSS have damaged the education system, and such incidents are happening repeatedly," she alleged.
Varsha Gaikwad, other Congress workers, and members of the National Students' Union of India (NSUI), the party's students' wing, gathered outside the institute's Powai campus on Thursday to stage a protest. Police detained Congress workers before their protest could begin, and later also took Gaikwad into custody when she reached the spot.
Youth Congress national president Uday Bhanu Chib on Thursday demanded the immediate arrest of the IIT Bombay director Prof Shireesh Kedare and Prof Suryanarayana Doolla over the death.
Three students died by suicide at the institute in the past seven months, he claimed, and demanded that data from Wakode's laptop, mobile phone and other electronic devices, which he said were with the Crime Branch, be provided to his family at the earliest.
"The Youth Congress will continue its fight until Sahil gets justice," Chib said.
Students are also staging a protest in the institute seeking accountability and institutional reforms following Sahil's death.
Mid-semester exams postponed
The institute postponed the mid-semester examinations scheduled for September 26-27 to October 10-11, an official said. It also reissued its apology over its earlier communication, which had indicated that Sahil died by suicide hours after allegedly being caught using ChatGPT in an exam.
In a post on X, IIT Bombay said, “Sharing the earlier post of 21st Sept 2026 again: We apologise for the statements contained in our earlier communication concerning the circumstances surrounding the unfortunate demise of Sahil.
“The details and circumstances leading up to the incident remain subject to investigation by the appropriate authorities. In view of the ongoing investigation, it was inappropriate to have set out or characterised details relating to the events preceding his demise before they had been duly established through the appropriate investigative process,” it said.
Probe underway
The Mumbai Police Crime Branch is conducting a probe into Sahil’s death. Faculty member Suryanarayan Doolla, named in the FIR, which alleges abetment to suicide on grounds of caste discrimination, has been sent on leave to facilitate an impartial probe into the case.
Some TV channels aired CCTV footage from the examination hall that captured Sahil's movements before a professor approached him and led him away from the hall after he was allegedly caught copying. However, there was no word from the police on this issue.
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Meanwhile, an email purportedly sent in 2024 by Professor Doolla, then Dean of Student Affairs, has been circulating on social media.
In the email, Prof Doolla cautioned students against asking fellow students about their admission categories, JEE (Advanced) ranks or GATE scores, saying such questions could reveal their caste or whether they belonged to a reserved category.
(With inputs from agencies)
