NEW DELHI: IIT Delhi Director Rangan Banerjee on Friday warned students of disciplinary action following what he described as a significant “escalation” during a midnight protest on Thursday, August 27, amid continuing demonstrations over the death by suicide of 31-year-old MSc Physics student Rishikesh Kumar.
The warning came as students staged protests for the fifth consecutive day on the institute campus, demanding justice and accountability over Kumar’s death. Protesters marched with banners carrying messages including, “IIT Delhi students demand justice! Investigation, Compensation, Resignation. We stand with Rishikesh.”
In a message to the institute community, Banerjee said, "I am writing to you as a follow up of the mail sent earlier where we had committed to a set of specific steps based on discussions with the student representatives and other students. The External Inquiry Committee has started functioning. The Institute support for the family from the Benevolent fund has been approved and the separate fund with voluntary contributions from faculty, students and staff has been created.
The External Ombudsperson will be appointed next week. We have continued to engage with our student representatives and other students in good faith."
Banerjee said the situation escalated between 10:30 pm and 12:30 am when a group of protesters moved into campus residential areas and held demonstrations in front of faculty housing.
He alleged that protesters used “unsavoury, humiliating and threatening language in slogans”, arguing that such conduct compromised the safety, privacy and peace of faculty members and their families, including children and elderly dependents.
“The Institute will take disciplinary actions against individuals disrupting the peaceful functioning of the campus including residential areas, classes, academic and other activities,” Banerjee said.
He further said, “We look forward to your help and cooperation in maintaining the Institute environment.”
The warning has also drawn a response from “Voice of IIT Delhi”, a supportive page that has been amplifying the student movement. Reposting Banerjee’s message, the page said, “Threats won’t silence us. Justice won’t wait and the louder the threats, the stronger our voice.”
Despite the warning, protests continued on campus. During the midnight demonstration, students were heard raising slogans including, “Professor bahar aao, aao hamara saath do,” appealing to faculty members to come out and support them.
Meanwhile, Dipke, founder of the Cockroach Janata Party, called for a “complete overhaul” of India’s education system following Kumar’s death. In a post on X, Dipke said students need educational environments where they feel “supported, heard and hopeful about their future.”
Referring to reported student suicides at IITs, Dipke said 65 students had died by suicide at the premier institutions over the past five years. “If this is the situation at our best institutions, imagine the state of the rest,” he questioned.
