Mumbai: Fresh CCTV footage from an examination hall at IIT Bombay has surfaced, offering the first clear visuals of the moments before a second-year BTech student left the test on September 18. The recordings, captured between approximately 12:30 pm and 12:45 pm with about 15 minutes remaining in the mid-semester examination, show the student seated at a desk. He is seen bending slightly and looking toward his pocket. A professor then approaches, speaks with him, and the student hands over a mobile phone before being taken aside from the other examinees. Subsequent campus footage tracks the student’s movements after he exits the hall.
Authorities are examining the sequence of events on the day of the incident to understand what Sahil may have been going through before he died by suicide. CCTV footage from the examination day provides a visual account of what transpired inside the examination hall on Friday, September 18. The footage shows that between 12:30 pm and 12:45 pm, Professor Suryanarayana Doolla asked Sahil to leave the examination hall.
Sahil was then seen outside the examination hall and, by around 1.25 pm, entering his hostel room, according to CCTV footage from the lobby. “After that the child did not leave his room, and later it came to light that he had died by suicide.
The visuals form a key part of the ongoing Crime Branch investigation into the student’s death. Police are examining feeds from the examination hall, campus pathways, and hostel areas to reconstruct the sequence of events.
The phone recovered from the room has been sent for forensic analysis. The incident has triggered student protests on campus demanding accountability and improved mental health support. The student’s family has alleged prior harassment, leading to the registration of a case that includes charges related to abetment. The professor who invigilated the exam has been relieved of certain administrative duties pending the probe.
Investigators continue to review the footage and other evidence as the inquiry proceeds.
Five days after the death by suicide of second-year IIT Bombay BTech student Sahil Wakode on the institute campus, the case has moved into a criminal investigation following allegations by his parents that he faced caste discrimination. The Mumbai Crime Branch is questioning students who were present in the examination hall where Sahil was reportedly caught for cheating and examining CCTV footage from the institute. His mobile phone has also been sent for forensic analysis. Meanwhile, IIT Bombay has placed Professor Suryanarayana Doolla on leave amid the investigation, with reports stating that he is expected to be questioned by Crime Branch officials on September 23.
