IIT Bombay agrees to review punishment rules, suspends dean amid uproar over student's death

The institute also apologised for its initial statement on the death and said it would review examination rules and strengthen grievance redressal.

The Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay (IIT-B) has suspended its dean of administrative affairs, Prof Suryanarayana Doolla, after massive student protests prompted the institute to take action after a second-year BTech student died by suicide at its Powai campus on Friday.

Mumbai police detained activists from several student organisations during a protest outside the IIT-Bombay campus in Powai, Mumbai. (Raju Shinde/Hindustan Times)

The premier engineering institute has also issued a written apology for a statement it had issued on the circumstances surrounding the death, acknowledging that it was not appropriate to have commented on the matter as it is under investigation. Soon after the suicide, the institute had said the student had been caught using a mobile phone to access ChatGPT during a mid-semester exam.

On Monday evening, the faculty members held a march on the institute’s campus to support Doolla. The IIT-Bombay Faculty Forum said that he followed “Senate-approved exam procedure” when he reported the student for alleged phone use on September 18.

Dean suspended amid student protests

Foremost among them was the suspension of Prof Suryanarayana Doolla, a teacher of the deceased student and the invigilator who had caught him cheating during an exam on Friday. Doolla has also been charged with abetment to suicide and alleged discrimination on the basis of caste.

The boy’s father had claimed that his son was mocked, tortured and discriminated on caste lines and demanded probe into the role of the IIT Bombay administration in his son’s death.

IIT-Bombay apologises for earlier statement

Doolla’s suspension, the institute’s apology and assurances on several other issues were made by the IIT-B administration during an open house that lasted three and a half hours on Monday evening. But students at the institute said their protests would continue till Doolla is suspended from his posts as professor in the Department of Energy Science and Engineering and the investigation into the suicide is complete.

After the open house IIT-B also said it would meet the professors legal fees.

During the open house, which was live-streamed on by students on social media, the IIT-B administration said it would review its examination punishment rules during its upcoming Senate meeting.

Existing rules prescribe academic suspension

According to the July 2026 rules published by the institute, possession of unauthorised material such as chits, digital devices and AI gadgets, scribblings on the body, or using unauthorised material during bio-breaks while an examination is in progress can attract an FR 2 grade and academic suspension for one semester.

FR 2 is a disciplinary fail grade linked to examination malpractices. Verbal communication with another student during an examination can attract an FR grade. Detection of copying during evaluation of answer books or crib sessions can also result in an FR grade. For repeat offences involving malpractices, the rules provide for a minimum of one semester of academic suspension.

Students said the punishment provisions needed to be examined in the context of the September 18 incident and questioned whether the existing system provides enough support to students facing serious academic consequences.

Grievance system under review

Discussions at the open house also focused on the institute’s grievance redressal system. Several students said they had not received responses to grievances submitted in the past, or did not know the status of their complaints.

Kedare said the institute would establish a more student-friendly support system for grievances, which would allow. students to track their status.

Student groups and alumni alleged systemic issues within the administration.

Pranav Jeevan, an alumnus, criticised the institute’s handling of student affairs and mental health.

“The administration frequently punishes students with arbitrary threats of hostel eviction, suspension, and heavy financial penalties, even fining students up to ₹1.5 lakh for organising a play,” he said.

“Despite past tragedies, the campus lacks effective caste sensitisation, adequate mental health support, and an empowered SC/ST Cell to address discrimination,” he alleged.

Jeevan claimed that official statements released prior to a detailed investigation aimed to protect faculty members, adding that non-compliance with faculty reservation norms remains an unaddressed root issue.

Faculty forum backs suspended dean

In an official statement, Prof Rajkumar S Pant, president of the IIT Bombay Faculty Forum, said, “The Faculty Forum of IIT Bombay stands strongly with our colleague Prof. Suryanarayana Doolla. During his long tenure as Dean (Student Affairs), Prof Doolla was instrumental in setting up several initiatives for the welfare of the student community on campus,” the statement said.

“We are distressed by the vilification of our colleague’s reputation by false and misleading media reports. We also reiterate that we are pained by the sad demise of our student due to the unfortunate incident on September 18,” the statement added.

The forum is a formal body of the institute, consisting of over 750 members, through which faculty members at IIT Bombay can voice opinions to the institute and other bodies.