IIT-B director signs 18 student demands amid calls for resignation, professor's suspension

IIT-Bombay director Shireesh Kedare signed an 18-point charter after 3 days of protests over Sahil Wakode's death by suicide. The agreement acknowledges students' demands, including the resignation of the director, but action on the invigilating professor remains subject to due process.

In Short

• Mumbai Crime Branch is probing the case filed after parental allegations
• Institute said Wakode was counselled after alleged exam malpractice involving AI
• Students want an independent inquiry with reports due by October 15

The standoff at IIT-Bombay entered a new phase late Sunday after the institute administration agreed to take forward an 18-point charter placed by protesting students. Director Prof Shireesh Kedare signed the document following a prolonged meeting with students who had been holding a sit-in near the campus main gate for three days.

The agreement came amid growing demands for accountability following the death by suicide of 20-year-old student Sahil Wakode. Among the key demands raised by the protesters is action against Prof Suryanarayana Doolla, who was invigilating the examination attended by Wakode shortly before his death.

The students have sought Doolla’s suspension as part of their demands. During the meeting, when the issue was raised, Kedare was heard saying that the institute would “follow the process”.

An institute official later indicated that the matter would be dealt with through due procedure, suggesting that the signing of the charter did not amount to an immediate decision on every individual demand.

The late-night development followed nearly three hours of discussions between the protesting students and senior members of the IIT-Bombay administration. The charter includes demands concerning the investigation into Wakode’s death as well as wider changes to the institute’s academic, disciplinary and student-welfare systems.

A few videos are also circulating on social media that purportedly show the resignation of the IIT-Bombay director. However, there has been no official confirmation regarding the matter.

India Today does not claim to have independently verified the authenticity of these videos.

On the evening of September 20, sources hinted at the steps that the IIT-Bombay management was expected to take, including the possible resignation of the IIT-Bombay director.

THE 18-POINT-CHARTER

The 18-point charter, however, goes beyond the question of Doolla’s suspension.

Students have sought an independent investigation into the circumstances surrounding Wakode’s death, with an interim report by September 30 and a final report by October 15.

They have also demanded an open house involving the director, Dean of Student Affairs and other senior officials, as well as an apology over what they described as the public “defamation” of Wakode.

Accessed exclusively by the India Today Digital team, the document below contains details of some of the key demands listed in the charter.

Several demands focus on systemic changes.

These include a code of conduct for professors, sensitisation of faculty and staff on mental health, improvements to in-person counselling, changes to the Disciplinary Action Committee process and greater student representation in institutional decision-making.

Students have also proposed a task force comprising students, faculty members, mental-health professionals and external experts to examine student distress and recommend preventive measures.

They have sought improved mental-health and medical services, including a 24-hour psychiatrist-on-call facility at the institute hospital.

The charter also seeks a written implementation plan by September 26 and an assurance that students participating peacefully in the protest will face no action.

Students have further demanded that the director resign if the proposed reforms are not implemented within a month.

CHEATING, SUICIDE AND A SUSPENSION

Professor Doolla has been named in the FIR registered by Mumbai Police on the basis of a complaint from Wakode’s parents.

Police have registered an abetment-of-suicide case and invoked provisions of the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act after the family alleged caste-based harassment. The investigation has since been transferred to the Mumbai Crime Branch.

The students’ demand for action against Doolla comes in the aftermath of the examination incident involving Wakode.

The second-year Energy Science and Engineering student was allegedly found using a mobile phone during a mid-semester examination on Friday.

IIT-Bombay said he had uploaded the question paper to an AI platform to seek answers and maintained that no disciplinary action had been initiated against him.

The institute said the student was counselled and assured that the incident would not adversely affect his academic career.

Wakode was later found dead in his hostel room.

IIT-Bombay has denied the caste-discrimination allegation and said no such complaint had been submitted by Wakode to the institute’s SC/ST cell or administration.

Meanwhile, IIT-Bombay’s Faculty Forum has publicly backed Doolla, saying he was performing his invigilation duties in accordance with the institute’s approved academic procedures.

The forum said it was concerned about the “tarnishing” of his reputation and maintained that he had reported the alleged examination malpractice through the prescribed process.

The administration is expected to place the details of Sunday night’s agreement before students at an open house on Monday, after which the protesting students will decide whether to continue their agitation.

The institute’s Board of Governors is also expected to meet as the police investigation into Wakode’s death continues.

- Ends