"He Was Harassed, Killed": Mother Of IIT Bombay Student Who Died By Suicide

The mother of Sahil Wakode, the IIT Bombay student who died by suicide hours after being caught using AI during an examination, has alleged that her son was harassed, which caused his death. "My son has been killed. He was severely harassed. I want justice," she said.

Mumbai Police have registered an abetment-of-suicide case on a complaint filed by Wakode's father. Police said the father named several people in his statement and all of them are being investigated for their alleged roles.

Wakode, an MSc second-year student of the IIT's Department of Energy Science and Engineering, was found dead in his hostel room on the institute's Powai campus on Friday evening.

According to IIT Bombay, he was found using a mobile phone in the examination hall earlier that day and had uploaded the question paper on ChatGPT to seek answers.

What Institute Said

"No disciplinary action was initiated against the student. The matter was also discussed with the student by the instructor and the Head of the Department, who counselled him and assured him that the incident would not adversely affect his academic career," the institute claimed in a statement. It said Wakode then returned to his hostel room, and "later in the evening, he was found dead in his room".

"The circumstances surrounding the death are being looked into by the appropriate authorities," the statement further said.

Students Protest, Raise Questions

But more than 400 students staged a protest on the campus and alleged that Wakode had been threatened with a one-year suspension, which would have required him to vacate the hostel and could have extended his course beyond four years. The protesting students also alleged that the institute had not disclosed the full circumstances of the death.

"We have come out to demand accountability and transparency from the administration. This isn't the first incident," a protesting student said.

This is the third death by suicide on the IIT Bombay campus in seven months. A second-year student died by suicide in his hostel room in February, and a 20-year-old second-year BTech student died by suicide in July.