IIT campuses see protests over student suicides, campus conditions

Students at IIT Bombay protested and submitted an 18-point memorandum after BTech student Sahil Wakode died by suicide on September 18, 2026; his parents alleged casteist harassment by a professor. The institute announced a ten-member inquiry committee on September 24. IIT Delhi had similar protests for six days after student Rishikesh Kumar's death. Students and faculty cited inadequate infrastructure, weaker placements, fee hikes and restrictive campus rules as sources of frustration.

Written by AI from Scroll.in · not yet reviewed by an editor · Published 28 Sept 2026, 8:39 am IST

Source

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#iit#student protests#student suicides#caste discrimination#campus rules#placements

Desk check · some claims need care

What the desk checked (5)

IIT Bombay BTech student Sahil Wakode died by suicide on September 18, 2026, and his parents alleged casteist harassment by a professor. — Attributed to the parents' allegation in the source; the harassment claim is an allegation, not a finding.
Students submitted an 18-point memorandum, the director signed it after three days of protests, and a ten-member committee was announced on September 24. — Figures and dates appear in the source; the director's signing is attributed to media reports.
IIT Delhi students protested after the suicide of Rishikesh Kumar and paused after six days when a committee was formed; his parents declined compensation. — Stated in the source without named institutional source.
120 students died of suicide or unnatural causes at IITs in the last 10 years against 51 in the previous decade, with SC/ST rates about twice those of general category students. — Attributed to data compiled by Dheeraj Singh of the Global IIT Alumni Support group; not independently verifiable here.
Placements fell significantly in 22 of 23 IITs between 2021-22 and 2023-24. — Attributed in the source to data the Centre submitted to a Parliamentary Standing Committee in 2025.

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Analysts’ view opinion

AI Policy Analyst

This is not only a personal tragedy but a story of policy mismatch: student intake at the IITs has expanded while infrastructure and welfare systems have not kept pace. The 18-point memorandum at IIT Bombay and the ten-member committee announced on September 24 follow a familiar sequence — incident, protest, committee. The core governance weakness is episodic, incident-driven response rather than structural reform.

Setting up a committee is the standard institutional tool, but as the six days of protest after Rishikesh Kumar's death at IIT Delhi suggest, what is missing is a transparent mechanism to show what the committee actually changed.
Limited internal grievance forums — the 2023 rules require prior permission for protests and for speaking to the media — push frustration into agitation rather than dialogue.
On an allegation of caste-based harassment, both the bereaved family and the faculty member named need a process that looks credible to each; an internal committee struggles to carry that credibility, which is why IIT Delhi students asked for an external inquiry.
Fee increases (a month-long protest at IIT Bombay in 2022 over hikes for MTech and PhD students), weaker placements and loan burdens compound financial stress — all of which are squarely welfare-policy questions.
Expanding access without matching allocations for classrooms, hostels, water and hygiene, and counselling staff is the central implementation gap in the expansion policy.

What to watch — Watch whether the Bombay committee's timeline, terms of reference and findings are made public, and which of the 18 demands are actually converted into standing policy.

The story does not establish the caste-harassment allegation as fact; it remains an allegation under examination, and no official finding on the cause of death is reported.

Deep dive

Research brief · 8 facts · 10 dates · exam-ready

The brief

Context

On September 18, 2026, Sahil Wakode, a BTech student at IIT Bombay, died by suicide; his parents alleged he faced casteist harassment from a professor. Student protests followed, with an 18-point memorandum demanding a fair investigation and better student support systems, and the institute announced a ten-member inquiry committee on September 24. A month earlier, IIT Delhi students had protested for six days after the suicide of student Rishikesh Kumar. The agitations are unusual for the IITs, which have long restricted protests and political activity, and come amid student and faculty complaints about infrastructure, placements, fee hikes and a restrictive campus environment.

Key facts

Sahil Wakode, a BTech student of IIT Bombay, died by suicide on September 18, 2026; his parents alleged casteist harassment by a professor.
Students submitted an 18-point memorandum; after three days of protests media reported the director signed it, and on September 24 a ten-member inquiry committee was announced.
At IIT Delhi, students protested for six days after the suicide of Rishikesh Kumar, demanding an external inquiry committee and compensation; his parents declined compensation.
Data compiled by Dheeraj Singh, founder of the Global IIT Alumni Support group and an IIT Kanpur alumnus, shows 120 student deaths by suicide or unnatural causes in the last 10 years, against 51 in the previous decade.
The same data showed SC and ST students died by suicide at roughly twice the rate of general category students.
Since 2023, eight students have died by suicide at IIT Delhi; three have died by suicide at IIT Bombay this year alone.
Centre's data to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports in 2025 showed placements fell significantly in 22 of 23 IITs between 2021-'22 and 2023-'24.
In 2022, IIT Bombay students held a month-long protest against fee hikes of 39% for MTech and 45% for PhD students; the institute partially rolled back the hike.

Timeline

2015IIT Madras derecognised the student group Ambedkar Periyar Reading Circle, withdrawing the decision a week later after nationwide student protests.
2018IIT Kharagpur banned 'political/apolitical gathering/meeting' ahead of a planned march supporting Aligarh Muslim University students assaulted by police.
2020During protests against the Constitutional Amendment Act, the IIT Bombay director told students to keep politics off campus.
2022Month-long IIT Bombay protest against MTech (39%) and PhD (45%) fee hikes; fees partially rolled back.
2023IIT Bombay rules stated all protests, marches and gatherings need prior permission from the institute and local police, and barred unapproved media comments.
2025IIT Bombay suspended a student for 'unauthorised comments' to media; he was reinstated after a court ruled in his favour.
July (this year, per source)Cockroach Janata Party protest launched, which many IIT students said emboldened them; IIT Roorkee asked students and faculty to avoid political activity without permission.
August 2026 (the month before, per source)IIT Delhi protests after Rishikesh Kumar's suicide; paused after six days once a committee was formed.
September 18, 2026Sahil Wakode died by suicide at IIT Bombay.
September 24, 2026IIT Bombay announced a ten-member committee to investigate the incident.

Who has a stake

IIT students, especially from SC, ST and OBC communities — Face isolation, loan burdens and, per the data cited, roughly twice the suicide rate of general category students; seek safe grievance redressal.
IIT Bombay administration and director — Signed the 18-point memorandum and set up a ten-member inquiry committee; faces scrutiny over casteist harassment allegation and restrictive rules.
Families of Sahil Wakode and Rishikesh Kumar — Wakode's parents alleged casteist harassment and invoked the SC/ST atrocity act; Kumar's parents declined the compensation offered.
IIT faculty — Struggling with expanded class sizes and inadequate space; the source says many faculty across IITs rallied behind the accused professor after caste allegations.
Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports — Received Centre's data showing placement declines in 22 of 23 IITs; oversight of higher education performance.
Student political organisations (SFI, ABVP) — Have not established a presence in IITs; some protesting students raised slogans against party-affiliated groups to keep protests 'apolitical'.

Why it matters

The IITs are India's flagship technical institutions, yet the source records 120 suicides or unnatural deaths in a decade, more than double the 51 of the previous decade, with SC and ST students dying at roughly twice the rate of general category students. The protests suggest that caste discrimination, overcrowded infrastructure, falling placements and fee hikes are combining with rules that restrict protest, media contact and political activity, leaving students without channels to raise grievances. How institutions respond will shape both student welfare and the credibility of inquiry mechanisms that students say lapse within days.

UPSC angle

Prelims pointers

Sahil Wakode, IIT Bombay BTech student, died by suicide on September 18, 2026; ten-member inquiry committee announced September 24, 2026.
Students' charter: 18-point memorandum at IIT Bombay; IIT Delhi students protested six days after Rishikesh Kumar's death.
Global IIT Alumni Support group data: 120 suicides/unnatural deaths in 10 years versus 51 in the previous decade; SC/ST rate roughly twice that of general category.
Centre's 2025 submission to the Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports: placements fell in 22 of 23 IITs between 2021-'22 and 2023-'24.
IIT Bombay's 2023 rules require prior permission from institute and local police for all protests, marches and gatherings.
IIT Madras rules permit student associations only if not affiliated to external political parties or groups promoting hatred; IIT Madras derecognised the Ambedkar Periyar Reading Circle in 2015 before reversing it.

Mains framing

The IIT protests of 2026 point to a structural crisis rather than isolated tragedies: the source records 120 suicides or unnatural deaths in a decade against 51 in the previous one, with SC and ST students dying at roughly double the rate of general category students, indicating that caste-based exclusion operates inside elite technical institutions. Contributing causes named by students and faculty include overcrowded classrooms and hostels at institutions whose intake has grown without matching resources, poor water and hygiene, counselling services students distrust, steep fee hikes that force loans (39% for MTech and 45% for PhD at IIT Bombay in 2022), and falling placements in 22 of 23 IITs between 2021-'22 and 2023-'24 as reported to a parliamentary panel. These pressures are amplified by rules that require police and institutional permission for protests, bar unapproved media comment and restrict political affiliation, so grievances surface only as post-suicide flashpoints; an alumnus notes that inquiry committees typically lose momentum within days. The response to the Wakode case, where faculty across IITs rallied behind the accused professor after the SC/ST atrocity act was invoked, shows why students demand external, time-bound inquiries, published placement and grievance data, transparent anti-discrimination mechanisms, strengthened mental-health support and infrastructure funding proportional to expanded enrolment, alongside legitimate forums for student voice.

Key terms

18-point memorandum: The charter of demands IIT Bombay students submitted after Sahil Wakode's death, seeking a fair investigation and better student support systems.
SC/ST atrocity act: The law invoked by Wakode's family over alleged casteist harassment; the source says faculty across IITs then publicly backed the accused professor.
Global IIT Alumni Support group: Alumni body founded by IIT Kanpur alumnus Dheeraj Singh, which compiled the data on IIT student suicides and unnatural deaths.
Ambedkar Periyar Reading Circle: Student group derecognised by IIT Madras in 2015; the decision was withdrawn a week later after nationwide student protests.
Cockroach Janata Party: Group whose protest launched in July, which students said emboldened IIT students to raise their own issues.
Parliamentary Standing Committee on Education, Women, Children, Youth and Sports: Panel to which the Centre submitted 2025 data showing placements fell in 22 of 23 IITs over three years.

Practice questions

Student suicides in elite technical institutions are often treated as individual tragedies rather than institutional failures. Critically examine in the light of recent protests at the IITs.
Discuss how restrictions on campus protest, media interaction and political affiliation affect grievance redressal in higher educational institutions. Suggest reforms.
Expansion of student intake without proportionate infrastructure and placement outcomes has weakened the promise of the IIT brand. Analyse.

Grounded only in the source report — figures and dates are the source's, not inferred.

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