After the death of a final year Indian Institute of Technology Delhi (IIT Delhi) student allegedly by suicide, his parents have written a letter to the director of IIT Delhi expressing their discontent about the course of the investigation.
Varad Nerkar's parents expressed disappointment in a letter to the IIT Delhi Director Rangan Banerjee stating, "We are deeply disappointed that you have immediately forwarded our complaint letter to the police without giving it serious attention. Is IIT Delhi trying to shirk its responsibility on this serious complaint?"
Upon receiving their initial request, Rangan Banerjee, the director of the institute, expressed his condolences and promised to cooperate with the ongoing police inquiry.
Banerjee's initial email to the parents included a statement affirming its support to ensure justice. The email by the IIT Delhi director stated, "We wish to inform you that Delhi Police is investigating the suicide, which has been registered at Police Station Kishangarh as Case No./File No./Diary No. 0101A dated 15/02/2024. The institute is providing all possible cooperation in the investigation."
However, expressing disappointment over their complaint being swiftly forwarded to the police, they questioned the institute's commitment to addressing internal governance violations related to their son's death.
"We are sure that IIT Delhi has its own statutes, policies and protocols that govern the entire campus fraternity, including the Faculty Guides, who must abide by them," the parents stated, urging the establishment of an independent external committee to probe the case thoroughly.
The letter from Varad's parent sought answers about the role of the police department in the local administration of IIT Delhi. The letter stated, "We understand that the police are investigating the case from the criminal angle under the Code of Criminal Procedure. They are not looking at the internal statues of IIT Delhi and their violations."
Citing to a case of IIT Madras, Varad's parents in the letter stated, " In an email sent to students on April 25, 2023, the Registrar of IIT-Madras said that based on the allegations made by the family, a committee had been formed under the chairmanship of former DGP of Tamil Nadu, G Tilakavathi (retired IPS). It has been decided that it will investigate the death by suicide of Sachin Kumar Jain, a PhD scholar at IIT Madras."
Varad's parents have requested the establishment of a similar investigation to look into their son's case.
