Daijiworld Media Network - Mumbai

Mumbai, Oct 20: The parents of an Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) student who died by suicide on September 18 have written to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis, seeking his intervention to ensure justice for their son. They alleged that despite staging a protest at Azad Maidan for the past 16 days, neither government representatives nor IIT-B officials had met them.

Addressing a press conference at the protest venue on Monday, the student’s father said the family was dissatisfied with the ongoing police investigation and demanded that an officer of Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) rank be appointed to probe the case.

He also questioned the circumstances surrounding an alleged apology letter that his son was reportedly asked to write after being caught cheating during a mid-semester examination.

“The institute must clarify who asked him to write the letter, the circumstances in which it was signed and whether the examination rules allow such letters,” he said.

The family’s lawyer, advocate Siddharth Ingale, alleged that the police recorded the statement of Professor Suryanarayan Doolla, who has been booked for abetment to suicide, only on October 1, 14 days after the incident.

Ingale also questioned the timing of the release of certain materials related to the case, including CCTV footage allegedly linked to examination malpractice, the student’s purported confession letter and details of a phone conversation with a girl.

He said the investigation appeared to focus primarily on examination malpractice, while the allegations of abetment to suicide and casteist remarks by a faculty member also required thorough investigation.

The lawyer added that after receiving information that Professor Doolla had travelled abroad, the family wrote to the chief minister and the Joint Commissioner of Police, seeking details of his travel and clarification on how he could leave the country while the investigation was underway.

However, sources in IIT-B and the police said the professor had not travelled abroad, was in India and was cooperating with the investigation.

Ingale also criticised the authorities for allegedly failing to meet the grieving family despite their prolonged protest.

Referring to Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde’s visit to Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff’s residence after a reported gun attack on Sunday, Ingale questioned why no representative had met the student’s parents.

“On Sunday, when Bollywood actor Tiger Shroff escaped a gun attack, Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde immediately visited his house. But no one has time to meet this family, which has been sitting at Azad Maidan for the past 16 days seeking justice for their son,” he said.

Meanwhile, the All India Independent Scheduled Castes Association (AIISCA) held a separate press conference on Monday, condemning the alleged detention and assault of Dalit activists and students during a protest at IIT-B’s main gate on Sunday.

Activist Rahul Sonpimple expressed a loss of faith in the judicial system, making strong remarks about caste discrimination and the Supreme Court.

AIISCA demanded immediate action by the Maharashtra State Commission for Scheduled Castes and the National Commission for Scheduled Castes over the alleged use of force against Dalit students and activists. It also called for Professor Doolla’s resignation and legal action against him, besides seeking the removal of IIT-B Director Shireesh Kedare.

Sonpimple said the association would organise a mass rally on Sunday and hold protests at the district level across the country in the coming days to demand justice for the deceased student.

Separately, IIT-B students on Monday launched ‘Justice Corner 2.0’ near the Ambedkar statue in the institute’s main building, a day after police dismantled their month-long protest site near the main gate.

In a statement, the students said the new sit-in was a response to the demolition of the earlier protest site and the administration’s alleged refusal to engage with them. They described the police action as an attempt to silence their movement.

The students are demanding an independent investigation into the student’s death, changes to the institute’s inquiry committee, the resignation of the director and the suspension of Professor Doolla.

They have also called for reforms to the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (SC/ST) cell, improved grievance-redressal mechanisms and better mental health support for students.