Candle march at Chaityabhoomi for IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode; protesters seek accountability

Activists from organisations including the All India Independent Scheduled Castes Association (AIISCA) and the Progressive Students Union gathered at Chaityabhoomi in Dadar on the evening of October 25. They came to show solidarity with Sahil Wakode and his parents, who are on a sit-in.

Sahil, 20, was a student at IIT Bombay. Last month he was found dead in his hostel room. His father subsequently filed an FIR invoking sections on abetment of suicide and the SC/ST Act.

Wakode's parents are on a sit-in at Azad Maidan. They joined the candle march called by these organisations. Meanwhile, their legal team has complained that, even though the investigation is still on, CCTV footage, conversations and an apology letter linked to Sahil's case were allegedly leaked to the media.

The protesters have three demands. First, that the professor named in Ravindra Wakode's FIR be arrested. Second, that SC and ST professors at IIT Bombay get greater and equal representation. Third, that the police personnel who allegedly used force against students protesting on the IIT Bombay campus on October 18 be suspended.

About 80 protesting organisations and teachers have signed an open letter to the director of IIT Bombay. The letter seeks accountability for alleged administrative lapses and demands the director's resignation.

The letter raises four main points. The first is IIT Bombay's initial press statement, which was later withdrawn. It had said Sahil was caught cheating on the day he died. The second is the stand taken by the IIT Bombay Faculty Forum in support of Suryanarayana Doola. The third is the alleged leak of CCTV footage to the media. The fourth is the alleged brutality of the police towards students protesting on the campus.

Rohan Sonpimple, director of AIISCA, said a member of his organisation had been detained at her home in Chembur before the event. He said: "Today our organisation only wanted to pay tribute to Sahil at Chaityabhoomi, a place of our community, and we do not understand why so much police is needed."

Police also detained activists during the protest at Chaityabhoomi. Three organisations were prominent among the organisers of the candle march: AIISCA, Aamchi Padhai Aamchi Ladhai and the Progressive Students Union.