Sahil Wakode’s parents begin hunger strike at Azad Maidan, seek arrest of IIT-B officials

The parents of IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode, who died by suicide last week, began a hunger strike at Azad Maidan on Thursday demanding the arrest of officials named in the FIR registered in connection with their son’s death. The protest comes a day after the couple alleged that they were forcibly taken out of Mumbai when they had planned to protest outside the IIT Bombay campus.

Ravindra and Sonali Wakode had earlier sought the immediate arrest of those named in the case during a meeting with the National Commission for Backward Classes. Their lawyer Nikhil Kamble said the couple was detained by Mumbai Police in Bhandup on Thursday morning while they were on their way to the IIT Bombay campus.

Police, however, said the parents had been permitted to stage their protest at Azad Maidan but were insisting on holding it outside the IIT Bombay campus. Police persuaded them to shift the venue, an officer said.

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Kamble said the couple was taken to Sonapur police station in Bhandup and subsequently to a government guest house to meet officials from the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes Commission.

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The parents had announced that they would begin a hunger strike if there was no arrest in the case.

Sahil, a second-year BTech student, died by suicide in his hostel room on September 18. His parents have alleged that he faced caste-based discrimination on campus.

Apart from demanding immediate arrest, the family has also demanded that the entire CCTV footage related to the incident be made public. “Instead of arresting the accused, they have leaked only a small bit of the CCTV footage to the media, where one cannot certainly see what is happening. They should release the entire CCTV footage to know what actually happened,” said Ravindra Wakode. He added that in addition to this, they will continue to demand immediate arrest of officials named in the complaint.

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Earlier in the day, the Wakode couple met with the Chairperson of National Commission for Scheduled Caste (NCSE) Kishor Makwana at the Sahyadri Guest house in Mumbai.