Sahil Wakode’s parents stage hunger strike at Azad Maidan, demand professor’s arrest

The parents of IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode, who died by suicide earlier this month, staged a hunger strike at Azad Maidan on Monday (September 28, 2026) demanding the arrest of Professor Suryanarayana Doolla, who has been named in the FIR registered in connection with their son’s death.

Ravindra and Sonali Wakode began their protest at 10 a.m. and continued until around 6.30 p.m. They have now sought permission from the Azad Maidan police to resume their agitation from 9 a.m. on Tuesday.

In a handwritten application submitted to the senior police inspector of Azad Maidan police station on Monday (September 28, 2026), advocate Nikhil Kamble, representing the family, sought permission for Ravindra Wakode to continue the protest on September 29, demanding justice for Sahil and Doolla’s arrest.

The family also questioned IIT Bombay’s internal inquiry into Sahil’s death, alleging that none of the members of the institute-appointed committee has contacted them so far.

IIT Bombay constituted a 10-member committee to investigate the circumstances surrounding Sahil’s death. The panel, which was initially given a week to complete its inquiry, has since been granted a one-week extension. A section of students has also raised objections to the composition of the committee and sought its reconstitution.

Sahil, a second-year BTech student in IIT Bombay’s Department of Energy Science and Engineering, died by suicide in his hostel room on September 18, hours after he was allegedly found with a mobile phone during a mid-semester examination. Doolla was the course instructor and was invigilating the examination.

Following Sahil’s death, his parents alleged that he had faced caste-based discrimination and harassment at the institute. Police subsequently registered an FIR against Doolla containing allegations of abetment to suicide and offences under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The allegations are under investigation.

IIT Bombay has meanwhile relieved Doolla of his administrative responsibilities and sent him on leave pending the inquiries. The Mumbai Police Crime Branch, which is investigating the case, has been recording statements and examining CCTV footage and other digital evidence.

Monday’s agitation was not the family’s first protest at Azad Maidan. The Wakodes had staged a hunger strike there last week after they were prevented from protesting outside the IIT Bombay campus. They had temporarily called off that agitation while warning that they would resume it if no arrest was made.