Due to the severity of the injury, victim's elder brother Manohar shifted him to a private facility in Thane. The victim was admitted to the ICU from July 10 to 12 in critical condition and has since been moved to the general ward. Doctors told mid-day he does not require surgery but will need long-term, medicine-based treatment
Santosh Akhade in the hospital in Thane. Pic/Aditi Alurkar
Santosh Akhade, the 24-year-old mess worker allegedly assaulted on IIT Bombay’s campus on July 9, is still undergoing treatment for a serious head injury at Siddhivinayak Hospital in Thane. Speaking to mid-day from his hospital bed, Akhade shared details of the incident, and his hopes of returning to the campus he says he loves.
“I’m still in a lot of pain,” said Akhade, who has been working at IIT Bombay since 2018 and currently serves in the Hostel 10 canteen. According to doctors at the Thane hospital, he suffered a deep injury on the left side of his head, resulting in a subdural haemorrhage.
As per the FIR filed by Powai police, the weapon used in the attack was a wooden stick. “I was attacked from behind, but I caught a glimpse of Anil Prajapati,” Santosh recalled. Prajapati, 28, who worked as a cook at Hostel 2, has been named the prime accused and is currently absconding.
Immediately after the assault, IIT-B residents rushed to help, taking Akhade first to the campus hospital and then to Rajawadi Hospital. “I live in the Tansa building. After I collapsed, a few students from the same building came to my aid and moved me to the side of the road,” Santosh recalled. His family explained this is why there were two distinct bloodstains at the scene.
Due to the severity of the injury, his elder brother Manohar shifted him to a private facility in Thane. Akhade was admitted to the ICU from July 10 to 12 in critical condition and has since been moved to the general ward. Doctors told mid-day he does not require surgery but will need long-term, medicine-based treatment.
“We found a subdural haemorrhage, a left-side bleed,” said Dr Ayush Khandelwal, CAO of the hospital. “We performed a second CT scan to confirm that Santosh was fully conscious and alert before shifting him out of the ICU. This kind of injury typically results from a fall, car accident, or being hit with a heavy stick.”
The financial burden of his treatment has fallen entirely on his family. Santosh’s brother and cousin are managing all the expenses. Hospital bills have already touched '60,000 to '70,000. Manohar, who works the night shift at a facility in Chembur, has not returned to work since the incident and has been sleeping at the hospital reception. “We don’t have medical insurance. Since Santosh was attacked off-duty, vendors say they can’t cover any costs either,” said Manohar.
Santosh’s cousin, Suraj Akhade, visited IIT-B on July 10 to request surveillance footage. “Officials said the specific location is not covered by cameras. However, the institute’s team is reviewing the rest of the footage and is keeping us updated,” Suraj said. Initially, when Santosh was admitted to Rajawadi Hospital, he couldn’t remember the attack. “I had lost a lot of blood. I thought I fell off my bicycle. Eventually, the memories started coming back,” said Santosh, visibly shaken.
Despite the trauma, he expressed a strong desire to return to work. “The students have always been good to me. I love the institute and my job. I hope to be back soon,” he said. His family shared that Santosh has lived on campus ever since he moved to Mumbai from Khed nearly seven years ago. Denying the police’s suspected motive, that the attack stemmed from a dispute over a woman colleague, Santosh said, “I had no relationship with her. She’s just someone I had to interact with for work. But the accused always suspected otherwise.”
As of Wednesday, police have traced Anil Prajapati to his hometown in Bihar. “He’s hiding there, which shows he knows he committed a crime. We will arrest him soon,” a police officer said. A dedicated team has likely been dispatched to Bihar to pursue his arrest.
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