Protesters being detained by the police during a joint protest by students and different political organisations demanding justice for deceased Sahil Wakode, outside IIT campus at Powai area, in Mumbai on October 18, 2026. | Photo Credit: PTI
The Mumbai Police on Sunday (October 18, 2026) detained several students along with the parents of Sahil Wakode, an IIT Bombay student who died by suicide, from the protest site in front of the institution.
Earlier, the police detained 10 students from the protest site before the parents arrived. These students were later released and returned to join the gathering, after which Ravindra and Sonali Wakode reached the institute.
Mr. Wakode submitted a letter to the Registrar of IIT Bombay. Congress MP Varsha Gaikwad later met with the parents. Lawyer Siddhartha Ingale said the police detained the couple after the MP left the site, adding that officers also detained him and took them to the Azad Maidan police station.
The police subsequently took 16 more students into custody, after which they cleared and demolished the protest site.
Students and activists from multiple organisations have been protesting and holding hunger strikes at the site for a month to demand accountability from the institute and the arrest of Prof. Suryanarayana Doola, who was named in the FIR filed regarding the student’s death.
(Assistance for overcoming suicidal thoughts is available on the State’s health helpline 104, Tele-MANAS 14416. and Sneha’s suicide prevention helpline 044-24640050)
Published - October 18, 2026 09:00 pm IST