Mumbai: The mother of a 22-year-old IIT Bombay student who died by suicide after he was allegedly caught using a mobile phone during an examination accused the institute of torturing her son and demanded justice on Saturday.
Sahil Ravindra Wakode, a native of Maharashtra's Yavatmal district, was found hanging from the ceiling fan in his room in Hostel Number 4 on the Powai campus on Friday evening, an official said.
Wakode's mother alleged her son was tortured. “My son was killed, tortured. I want justice,” she told reporters.
Wakode was a second-year BTech student in the Energy Science and Engineering department, he said.
According to a statement from IIT Bombay, the student had allegedly uploaded the examination question paper to ChatGPT to seek answers during the exam.
The official said Wakode's death came to light after his hostel mates got no response from his room and alerted the authorities, who then informed the police.
No suicide note was recovered from the spot, the official said, adding that the Powai police have registered an accidental death report (ADR) and sent the body for a post-mortem examination.
The incident also triggered protests on campus, with students demanding an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death.
The institute, in a statement issued late on Friday, said that the student was found using a mobile phone in the exam hall earlier that day.
But no disciplinary action was initiated against him, it stated.
The instructor and the Head of the Department had discussed the matter with the student and counselled him, assuring him the incident would not adversely affect his academic career.
He subsequently returned to his hostel room and was found dead later in the evening.
“The Institute is extending support to the student's friends, classmates, faculty members, and others affected by this tragic incident,” the statement said.
The circumstances surrounding the death are being probed, it added.
The death is the third reported case of suicide at the IIT Bombay campus in Powai in seven months.
In February, a second-year student died by suicide in a hostel. In July 2026, at the beginning of the new semester, a 20-year-old second-year BTech student had also ended his life.
(If you or someone you know is experiencing emotional distress, thoughts of self-harm, or a mental-health crisis, seek help from a qualified mental-health professional or contact a crisis-support helpline in your area. 24x7 Helpline number: 1800-599-0019)