IIT Delhi Forms 5-Member Panel to Probe MSc Student Death After Campus Protests
The Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Delhi has constituted a five-member panel to examine the circumstances surrounding the death of a 31-year-old MSc Physics student on its south Delhi campus, following student protests that prompted the administration to suspend classes earlier this week.
The committee has been given two weeks to submit its report. It will review existing protocols, examine the functioning of administrative offices, interview relevant students and faculty members, and recommend measures to strengthen student support systems. The institute has also proposed appointing an external ombudsperson to address student grievances that remain unresolved through existing internal mechanisms.
The panel comprises Ashok Kumar, former director general of police of Uttarakhand, an IIT-Delhi alumnus and vice chancellor of Haryana Sports University; Pratap Sharma, head of the department of psychiatry at AIIMS, New Delhi; two student representatives; and the IIT-Delhi registrar.
The inquiry follows demonstrations held by students after the MSc Physics student died on Saturday. The protests led the administration to suspend classes on Monday as students demanded scrutiny into the incident and the institute's mental health and support mechanisms.
According to police, a PCR call was received at Kishangarh police station at around 8:33 am on August 22 reporting that a student had jumped from a building. Police personnel transported the injured student to the IIT-Delhi campus hospital, where doctors declared him brought dead.
A preliminary police inquiry found that the student entered the campus through the main gate around 8:00 am, went to the Lecture Hall Complex, took an elevator to the sixth floor, and jumped from the front side of the building. Forensic and crime teams inspected the scene. Police said no suicide note was found and no injuries other than those consistent with a fall were observed. The student's mobile phone and counselling records are under examination.
According to the institute, the student joined IIT-Delhi in July 2025 and lived in a campus hostel. The administration described him as academically bright and stated that he had received medical and psychiatric support after fellow students raised concerns following Holi festivities earlier this year. He had previously undergone a month of inpatient hospital treatment and had withdrawn from both the second and third semesters on medical advice.
