Former Bharatiya Janata Party spokesperson Shehzad Poonawala expressed his support on Tuesday for Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay's professor Suryanarayana Doolla, who was suspended from his post of Dean (Student Affairs) on Monday amid an investigation into the death of 20-year-old student.
Shehzad Poonawalla added that the student's family “deserves answers” but the Professor Doolla “deserves a fair hearing”.
{{^htLoading}} {{/htLoading}}
Poonawala said that he stands with Doolla and added that allegations against him cannot become “a verdict”.
“Caste angle can’t be injected to cover up for cheating. Villainising a teacher before the facts are established can permanently damage his reputation even if he is later cleared,” Poonawalla wrote in a post on X (formerly Twitter).
Deep Dive
What specific actions did IIT Bombay take in response to the student suicide incident?
IIT Bombay suspended Professor Suryanarayana Doolla from his role as Dean of Student Affairs amid the investigation into the student's suicide and stated they would provide him legal assistance.
Why are students protesting against Professor Doolla following the student's death?
Students are protesting because they believe that the circumstances surrounding the student’s death, particularly after being allegedly caught cheating, involved inadequate support and may have contributed to his decision to take his own life.
How is the faculty at IIT Bombay responding to the situation surrounding Professor Doolla?
The faculty at IIT Bombay is divided; the Faculty Forum supports Doolla, asserting he acted according to approved procedures, while some faculty members express concern that public support may pressure the ongoing investigation.
He added that the student's family “deserves answers” but the professor “deserves a fair hearing”.
“Let evidence decide but don’t presume guilt until proven innocent,” he added.
{{^htLoading}} {{/htLoading}}
What happened?
{{^usCountry}}
IIT Bombay's Professor Suryanarayana Doolla was suspended on Monday with immediate effect amid probe into the death of 20-year-old second-year student in the campus, who allegedly died by suicide on September 18.
{{/usCountry}}
{{#usCountry}}
IIT Bombay's Professor Suryanarayana Doolla was suspended on Monday with immediate effect amid probe into the death of 20-year-old second-year student in the campus, who allegedly died by suicide on September 18.
On that day, Doolla was invigilating the mid-semester examination from 11 am to 1 pm and saw the student allegedly using a mobile phone during the examination. The student had allegedly uploaded the question paper to an AI platform to seek answers. Later in the day, the student from the Department of Energy Science and Engineering, was found dead. He allegedly died by suicide.
{{^htLoading}} {{/htLoading}}
After that, the Mumbai Police filed an FIR against Doolla and other officials.
The student's family alleged that he was subjected to institutional harassment and caste-based discrimination before he took the extreme step.
Other IITs rally behind professor
The IIT faculty from campuses in Delhi, Mumbai and Chennai have come forward in Professor Doolla's support, arguing that he was only discharging his duties.
The IIT-Bombay faculty members held a march in Doolla's support and the campus's Faculty Forum said that the Professor followed “Senate-approved exam procedure” when he reported the second year B Tech student for alleged phone use on September 18.
{{^htLoading}} {{/htLoading}}
The IIT-Delhi Faculty Forum released a statement saying he was “simply discharging his duties”.
Meanwhile, the IIT-Madras's faculty body urged against publicly holding individuals responsible before the due process is completed.
Nikita Sharma is a Senior Content Producer with Hindustan Times. She is a Delhi-based digital journalist with five years of experience writing and editing news stories across beats including crime, politics, tech, trends and much more, both national and international. At Hindustan Times, she is part of the news team and focuses on breaking news, keeping a track of what is happening where, and chasing ever-developing news stories. She has a penchant for covering crime, geopolitics, and Indian politics with a keen eye for stories often overlooked in the daily news cycle. At Hindustan Times, she has extensively covered several key events including the US Presidential elections, Air India plane crash, Pahalgam terror attack and Operation Sindoor, US’ tariff war, and others. As a Delhi aficionado, she particularly enjoys roaming and writing about the national capital — its heritage, food, art and culture, and the many problems that come with it — the pollution, waterlogging, traffic, and more. Nikita did her Bachelor in Journalism and Mass Communication from GGSIPU and started working as a digital journalist in 2021. During her first stint, she covered hyperlocal news at a Delhi-based newsroom, writing and editing stories on builder-buyer conflicts, civic issues such as potholes, waterlogging, lack of facilities at hospitals in Delhi, crippling of the city during peak monsoon season. She also wrote features covering Delhi’s art exhibitions, heritage walks, artist profiles, museums, classical Hindustani music concerts and dance shows. She entered mainstream news in 2023 and has previously worked at NDTV.
Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather major national developments and Karnataka Bandh LIVE.
Get the latest India News, breaking headlines and real-time updates from across the country. Stay informed about politics, government policies, crime, weather major national developments and Karnataka Bandh LIVE.
Home/India News/‘Let evidence decide’: Shehzad Poonawalla ‘stands with’ IIT Bombay's Professor Doolla at centre of student suicide
{{^htLoading}}
Advertisement
{{/htLoading}}
SHARE THIS ARTICLE ON
{{#usCountry}}{{/usCountry}}
Notifications
Get breaking alerts directly from the newsroom
Notifications are on!You'll be notified when news breaks
