IIT Delhi reconstitutes panel to probe student’s death as protests continue
IIT Delhi has reconstituted an inquiry panel to investigate a student's suicide following protests over the initial chairperson's perceived bias. Students continue to demand systemic changes regarding mental health support and faculty sensitivity.
Why it matters
The incident underscores growing concerns about student mental health and institutional accountability within India's premier technical universities.
Justice Mukta Gupta, a retired judge of the Delhi High Court, will now head the inquiry panel set up to examine the circumstances leading to the death of an IIT Delhi student, officials said on Thursday, even as student protests continued on campus for a fourth day.
The panel was reconstituted a day after former Uttarakhand Director General of Police Ashok Kumar, who was appointed as chair of the probe panel, recused himself from the committee. Students had objected to his inclusion, citing his purported comments on recent youth-led agitations, linking the protesters with “radicalisation”.
“A new panel has been constituted, with Justice Mukta Gupta as the chairperson. The other members include Pratap Sharan, HoD Psychiatry, AIIMS Delhi. Two student representatives and the IIT Delhi Registrar will also be part of the external probe panel,” an IIT Delhi official said.
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