Overview
- Police say Sahil Wakode was found dead in his hostel on September 18 hours after he was reportedly caught using a mobile phone to access ChatGPT during a mid‑semester exam and submitting a written apology.
- Powai police registered an FIR that names Professor Suryanarayana Doolla in an abetment‑to‑suicide case and the Mumbai Crime Branch has recorded statements from more than 40 people as part of its inquiry.
- Wakode’s parents have staged a hunger strike at Azad Maidan since September 24 demanding an independent external probe and accountability from IIT Bombay.
- On October 14 student groups, Ambedkarite organisations and activists marched on campus in a ‘Chalo IIT Bombay’ protest and police detained roughly 25–30 demonstrators while officials denied reports that Wakode’s father was taken into custody.
- Protesters and signatories have alleged procedural lapses in how the exam incident was handled, questioned recent changes to malpractice penalties and cited caste discrimination concerns, and they are pressing for an outside investigation and the director’s resignation.