MUMBAI: Mumbai Crime Branch records 40 statements in IIT Bombay student suicide case
The Mumbai Crime Branch has recorded statements of 40 people in connection with the death of IIT Bombay second-year student Sahil Wakode, including his parents, fellow students, hostel staff and others.
The Crime Branch is yet to record the statement of Professor Suryanarayan Doolla, who has been named in the FIR filed by Wakode’s parent. The family has alleged that Doolla subjected Sahil to caste-based discrimination and instigated him to end his life. Doolla has been booked for abetment of suicide.
The police have sent Wakode’s two mobile phones, laptop and tablet to the Forensic Science Laboratory in Kalina for examination. Investigators are seeking to retrieve data from the devices to establish the events leading up to his death and reconstruct the sequence of events.
Police officials said crucial evidence could emerge once the digital contents are retrieved. They added that the investigation was continuing, with all circumstances, statements and technical evidence linked to the case being examined.
In his statement to the police, Wakode’s father alleged that during their last meeting, Sahil told him that Doolla had subjected him to casteist abuse for three months at the instance of IIT Bombay Director Shirish Kedare. He also alleged that his son had expressed fear of being implicated in a false case.
Sahil’s parents have been on a hunger strike at Azad Maidan in Mumbai for the past three days, demanding Doolla’s arrest over the alleged harassment of their son. They have also alleged caste discrimination and sought the arrest of Kedare, accusing him of protecting Doolla.
Wakode, 22, a second-year BTech student, was found hanging in his hostel room on the evening of September 18, hours after he was allegedly caught using his mobile phone to access ChatGPT during a mid-semester examination.
IIT Bombay had earlier constituted a 10-member committee to inquire into the circumstances surrounding his death. Sahil’s parents and students have demanded that the panel be reconstituted, seeking what they described as a fair and impartial probe.
(With inputs from PTI)
