Parents of IIT Bombay student who died by suicide begin hunger strike at Azad Maidan

The parents of Sahil Wakode, an IIT Bombay student who died by suicide in his hostel room last month, have begun a hunger strike at Azad Maidan in Mumbai, pressing for the arrest of the institute officials named in the FIR registered in connection with their son's death.

Ravindra and Sonali Wakode had earlier met the National Commission for Backward Classes, where they demanded the immediate arrest of those named in the case. They also visited the Mumbai Crime Branch with the same demand, seeking the arrest of Professor Suryanarayana Doolla and IIT Bombay Director Shirish Kedare.

Sahil, a 22-year-old second-year student in the Department of Energy Science and Engineering, was found hanging from the ceiling fan of his hostel room on the Powai campus on September 18. He was a resident of Yavatmal in Maharashtra and, according to his parents, had told them he was being subjected to casteist slurs and discriminated against.

The case was transferred to the Crime Branch on September 19, a day after his death, following widespread protests on the campus.

Professor Doolla has been named in the FIR, which alleges abetment to suicide on grounds of caste discrimination, and he has been charged under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. IIT Bombay subsequently removed him from the post of dean of Administrative Affairs amid protests by students and political activists.

The family's lawyer, Siddharth Ingle, alleged that there was a deliberate attempt to malign Sahil's character and said a video had been intentionally leaked, adding that its source must be investigated.

The parents had initially insisted on demonstrating outside the IIT campus gates, but agreed to hold their hunger strike at the designated site in Azad Maidan after discussions with the Mumbai Police. While the exact timing of the protest was not immediately confirmed, sources close to the family indicated it would begin during the day.