IIT Bombay Removes Dean Suryanarayana Doolla After Student Suicide

IIT Bombay has removed Professor Suryanarayana Doolla from his position as Dean of Administrative Affairs with immediate effect, days after the death by suicide of second-year BTech student Sahil Ravindra Wakode. The decision was communicated to students in an email by institute director Prof Shireesh Kedare, who said any further action would be taken after the investigation. Doolla will continue to serve as a member of the teaching faculty and head of the Department of Energy Science and Engineering, according to reports. Wakode, a 22-year-old student in the Department of Energy Science and Engineering from Maharashtra's Yavatmal district, was found hanging in his room on the institute's Powai campus on the evening of September 18, hours after he was allegedly caught using a mobile phone during a mid-semester examination. Doolla was the invigilator during that examination and, according to the institute, reported the alleged malpractice to higher authorities. The institute had said Wakode was counselled by the instructor, faculty advisor and head of the department, and that no disciplinary action was initiated against him at that stage.