18 October,2026 03:39 PM IST | Mumbai | Aditi Alurkar
Students claimed that they were being taken to a police station located farther from Powai. Pic/ Aditi Alurkar
Mumbai Police detained protesters gathered outside the main gate of the Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IIT-B) in Powai around noon on Sunday and took at least 16 students from inside the campus in a police bus, students said.
The protests were organised by various groups, including the All India Students' Association (AISA), All India Students' Federation (AISF) and All India Independent Scheduled Castes Association (AIISCA), among others, to demand justice for 20-year-old BTech student Sahil Wakode, who was found dead in his hostel room on September 18.
Students claimed that the detained protesters were taken away by the police were being transported to a police station farther from Powai.
The circumstances surrounding their detention and the police station to which they were taken were not immediately clear.
The protest comes a month after Sahil was found dead in his hostel room. His parents, Ravindra and Sonali Wakode, visited the IIT Bombay campus on Sunday for the first time since their son's death, accompanied by a delegation.
The couple has been on a hunger strike at Azad Maidan for over 15 days, demanding accountability and action in the case. Ravindra Wakode has filed an FIR invoking provisions of the Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act and abetment to suicide, naming IIT Bombay director and Professor Suryanarayana Doolla in his statement.
The family and protesters have been demanding the immediate arrest of the two. The allegations have not been established.
Congress MP Varsha Gaikwad and MLA Aslam Shaikh were also present on the IIT Bombay campus. The parents and a delegation entered the campus, while students said the parents were later seated at the Justice Corner near the main gate.
The institute's director was also seen on campus, according to students.
The parents have sought a fair investigation into the circumstances surrounding Sahil's death and a meeting with the head of IIT Bombay's Board of Governors. They have also claimed that the institute's investigative committee has not contacted them.
Further developments in the protest and the police action are awaited.
