Mumbai:
IIT Bombay student Sahil Wakode, hours before he allegedly died by suicide at his hostel room in the campus, told a close friend that he “made a mistake”, sources have told NDTV.
“I made a mistake. My Thermodynamics paper also did not go well, and now this has happened,” sources said, quoting Wakode’s friend. She reportedly made the statement before the investigators.
Sahil Wakode, the 22-year-old second-year student in the Department of Energy Science and Engineering, was found hanging from the ceiling fan in his hostel room on the Powai campus last Friday, hours after being caught allegedly using a mobile phone to access ChatGPT during a mid-semester examination.
Sources confirm that Sahil spoke to his friend over the phone at around 2:30 pm on the day of his death.
This was the last conversation between Sahil and his close friend, after which he did not answer her calls, sources said.
According to sources, Sahil did not make any caste-related remarks or mention any caste-related incident during this conversation.
#Prime5 with @SehgalRahesha | IIT Bombay Suicide Case: Sahil’s Close Friend’s Statement Recorded @sujata_dwivedi reports pic.twitter.com/CQVcF4nb5J
— NDTV (@ndtv) September 23, 2026
Earlier, in conversation with his parents, the student had complained that he was being subjected to caste slurs and being discriminated against. Be patient, endure it, his father advised him, pointing at the big, bright future that lay ahead of him.
On Monday, IIT Bombay backtracked on its earlier statements, in which it claimed that Sahil cheated in an exam using ChatGPT, linking his death to it.
The institute issued a statement on X, withdrawing its comments about the suicide of the student and apologised.
“We apologise for the statements contained in our earlier communication concerning the circumstances surrounding the unfortunate demise of Sahil. The details and circumstances leading up to the incident remain subject to investigation by the appropriate authorities,” read the post.
It further stated, “In view of the ongoing investigation, it was inappropriate to have set out or characterised details relating to the events preceding his demise before they had been duly established through the appropriate investigative process.”
Sahil’s friend, who suffered a panic attack after she learnt of his death, was later questioned by investigators, and her statement was recorded as part of the ongoing probe, sources said.
Ravindra and Sonali Wakode, parents of Sahil, have been pressing for the immediate arrest of IIT Bombay Director Shirish Kedare and Professor Suryanarayan Doolla, who has been removed as the dean of Administrative Affairs following protests by students and political activists.
Suryanarayan Doolla, who was reportedly serving as an invigilator during the examination had reported the alleged use of the mobile phone to the institute authorities, has been named in the FIR in the case, which alleges abetment to suicide on grounds of caste discrimination. He has been charged under the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
Hundreds of students at IIT Bombay staged a demonstration on the institute’s campus on Tuesday in support of Professor Suryanarayana Doolla.
Read: IIT Bombay Professor Suryanarayana Doolla, At Centre Of Student’s Suicide Row, Sent On Leave
The IIT Bombay Faculty Forum also staged a campus march in support of Professor Doolla. The forum asserted that Doolla was simply fulfilling his duty as an invigilator when he reported an incident of “academic malpractice” involving unauthorised smartphone usage in line with Senate-approved guidelines.
The Mumbai Police on Wednesday appealed to the public and media to refrain from speculation, spreading misinformation or drawing premature conclusions in connection with the alleged suicide of the IIT Bombay student.
The IIT Bombay Alumni Association (IITBAA) has demanded a fair and speedy investigation into the alleged suicide, and said there should be no “media trial”, speculation or “nasty conclusions” directed at any individual.
The premier institute on Wednesday set up a 10-member high-level committee to probe the circumstances surrounding the alleged suicide.
