A day after Suryanarayana Doolla was accused of ‘caste discrimination’ by the parents of the student who was caught cheating in exam, the Faculty Forum of IIT Bombay has extended support to the Professor.
In a statement on Sunday (21st September), it said, “The Faculty Forum of IIT Bombay mourns the loss of life of a student of our institute, and offers deepest condolences to his family. We strongly express our solidarity with our colleague Prof. Suryanarayana Doolla, who was discharging his duties in line with the institute’s Senate approved academic policy currently in force.”
The Faculty Forum further added, “Prof. Doolla, the course instructor, was invigilating in the midsemester examination from 11-00 to 13-00 on Friday 18th September 2026, when he observed that a student was indulging in an academic malpractice, viz., unauthorized possession and use of a smartphone during the exam. As part of the institute approved procedure, he reported the incident to institute authorities for further action in the matter.”
It emphasised, “The Faculty Forum of IIT Bombay is absolutely distressed with the tarnishing of the reputation of our colleague Prof. Suryanarayana Doolla, who was merely discharging his academic duties, and following the institute approved procedures.”
The press release was signed by Professor Rajkumar S Pant, who serves as the President of the Faculty Forum. The development comes after Suryanarayana Doolla was booked under the draconian SC/ ST Act based on a complaint by the student’s parent.
For the unversed, a 2nd-year BTech student at IIT Bombay named Sahil Wakode took his own life on Friday (18th September) after being caught red-handed by Professor Suryanarayana Doolla. He later committed suicide in his hostel room.
Thereafter, protests emerged in the campus of the institute, demanding action against the esteemed faculty member. A day later, on Saturday (19th September), Sahil’s parents alleged that Professor Doolla had been mentally harassing and using casteist slurs against their son for 3 months at the behest of IIT Bombay’s Director Shireesh Kedare.
It must be mentioned that no single complaint was ever filed against Professor Doola or Shireesh Kedare either with the administration or the SC/ST cell of IIT Bombay during Sahil’s tenure at the institute.
