IITs face the heat as protest over student deaths grows

More student groups join protest demanding stern action against the increasing number of suicides among students post-Covid pandemic. 

Student groups inside and outside the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay and Madras have been demanding action against the recent suicides of Darshan Solanki, an 18-year-old engineering student of IIT Bombay, and Stephen Sunny Alappat, a second year MS student of IIT Madras.  

While the Akhil Bhartiya Vidyarthi Parishad (ABVP) joined the protests in Ahmedabad to draw attention to the increasing number of suicides at national institutes, the National Students’ Union of India (NSUI) has warned of state-wide protests in the coming days.  

“Rashtriya sansthan bhavishya banane ke liye hain, kabra ban ne ke liye nahi, (national institutes are to make future and not to turn into graves),” went the ABVP slogan during the protest near the statue of Gujarati poet Narmad outside Gujarat University in Ahmedabad, The Indian Express reported.  

“In the case of Darshan, who belonged to a Scheduled Caste, it came out and was highlighted. But students from other castes, too, are dying by suicides,” said ABVP city secretary Umang Mojitra as he stressing on the increasing spate of suicides among students.  

The Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC), a student body within the IIT Bombay campus, has also issued a statement saying that the investigation committee formed by the IIT Bombay administration to investigate Darshan Solanki’s death is neither transparent nor independent as the panel does not include any external member who is supposed to identify if the institute was at fault. 

The statement issued by the student body reads, “We came to know that a committee has allegedly been constituted by the IIT Bombay administration but no official communication about it has been received by the campus community. We had demanded for an independent committee which had external experts who understand caste discrimination. But we came to know that there is no external member.” 

“We reiterate our demand for resignation of the director as there is no hope for a fair investigation under this administration. The SC/ST cell should stop acting like a puppet of the administration and remember its commitment to students,” it said.  

“We also demand that the caste discrimination survey conducted in February 2022 and mental health survey conducted in June 2022 by the SC/ST cell should be released and action should be taken on the restitution of harassment that were received," the statement added. 

Read more: 

• Student group wants details of committee set up to probe IIT Bombay student’s death 
• It was not a suicide, my brother was killed, says IIT Bombay student’s sister 
• IITB student who ended life had spoken of caste discrimination on campus: Student group