Mental Stress, No 'Real' Action: Behind 4th Student Suicide in IIT-D in 8 Months

On 15 February, Varad, a final-year MTech student at the IIT-Delhi, allegedly died by suicide on campus.

24-year-old Varad Sanjay Nerkar, a final-year MTech student, allegedly died by suicide at the IIT-Delhi campus on 15 February. 

(Photo: Chetan Bhakuni/The Quint)

(If you feel suicidal or know someone in distress, please reach out to them with kindness and call these numbers of local emergency services, helplines, and mental health NGOs.)

"We used to speak with him [Varad] twice a day at 8:30 in the mornings and the evenings. Now we wait for his calls and end up bursting into tears... Every time I close my eyes, I can see an image of him."

It's been nearly a month since 43-year-old Sanjay Kashinath Nerkar, a resident of Maharashtra's Nashik, lost his eldest son Varad – and the family is yet to come to terms with the loss.

Varad was pursuing his Masters in Polymer Science and Technology – and is survived by his parents and a younger brother.

(Photo: Accessed by The Quint)

On 15 February, 23-year-old Varad, a final-year MTech student at the Indian Institute of Technology-Delhi (IIT-D), allegedly died by suicide inside his hostel room on campus.

"He was a bright and intelligent student... We don't want any other child or family to suffer like us."

Sanjay Nerkar

Varad's death is the fourth such case in IIT-Delhi in a span of eight months. On 3 March, Varad's parents, Sanjay and Bharti Nerkar, wrote to IIT-Delhi authorities alleging that their son took the extreme step due to "mental harassment" caused by two professors and a PhD research scholar, and demanded strict action against them.

IIT-Delhi's Director Ranjan Banerjee responded to the parents' letter – and said that the Delhi Police was "investigating the suicide."

But why do Varad's parents say they are "deeply disappointed"?

'IIT Was His Dream College... He Always Wanted to Go There'

Varad was pursuing his Masters in Polymer Science and Technology – and belonged to the Other Backward Class (OBC) category.

According to his father, he was a school topper till Class 10. After he completed his schooling in Nashik, he joined BTech in a college in Jalgaon. In 2021, he cracked the GATE (Graduate Aptitude Test in Engineering) exam in his first attempt – and secured a seat at IIT-Delhi.

"We had told him that IIT-D would be far away from home and asked him to find a college in Mumbai. But he responded, saying: 'Papa, it's my dream to study in IIT-D. I have worked very hard get in.' We were ecstatic for him – and wanted our son to follow his dreams."

Sanjay Nerkar told The Quint

Varad was the first student among his family and friends in Nashik to have secured a seat in IIT-Delhi, his father, who is a municipal corporation employee, told The Quint.

"We belong to a middle-class family, so it was a big deal when Varad moved to Delhi. He was always into Research and Development (R&D), so we hoped that he would make us and the country proud one day..." he added.

'Was Under a Lot of Pressure Last Two Months... Guides Mistreated Him,' Allege Parents

Varad, who was a resident of the Dronagiri hostel in IIT-Delhi, was all set to graduate in May 2024. According to his parents, few weeks before his death, he was recruited by HFCL in Hyderabad and was to join from 1 June.

However, he was under "severe mental stress" over the last two months as he was unable to complete his research project, his parents alleged.

In a letter addressed to IIT-Delhi Director Banerjee on 3 March, which has been accessed by The Quint, the parents accused Varad's project guide Prof Harpal Singh, co-guide Prof Josemon Jacob, and PhD student Md Anees for "mentally harassing" their son.

"In August 2023, Varad had requested his HOD to change his guide, which was when he was assigned to Prof Harpal Singh, and co-guide Josemon Jacob. He was then given a project on which he worked on for 12-15 hours a day. He was unable to get the necessitated reactions in the project. This went on for 30-40 days and Varad was upset and used to discuss the project with his friends. He used to call me and tell me that he was not able to complete the project..."

Varad's mother Bharti Nerkar alleged in her complaint

"He communicated that he wasn't able to attain the results for the project to both his guide and co-guide... despite this, both of them ignored his concerns and did not help him," she alleged.

The parents also claimed that Md Anees, a PhD student at IIT-Delhi, "ill-treated" their son – and made him do all of his research work.

Despite multiple attempts by The Quint, the professors and the PhD student did not respond to requests for comments on the allegations. The article will be updated as and when we receive a response.

Sanjay Nerkar further told The Quint, "Although he had a Service Selection Board (SSB) Indian Army interview scheduled in Prayagraj, he had cancelled it only to work on the project."

The letter read that the tipping point for their son was when an experiment went wrong at the university laboratory on 15 February – the day he died by suicide.

"I don't know what the professor told him that he went into depression that he went inside his hotel room and did this..."

Varad's parents alleged in the letter

IIT-Delhi's Public Relations Officer told The Quint said that police are investigating the case and refused to comment further on the matter.

On 5 March, in an email accessed by The Quint, IIT-Delhi's Director Banerjee responded to the letter, saying the Delhi Police was "investigating the suicide."

"We share with you the grief caused by the unfortunate, untimely and tragic demise of our student Varad Nerkar. Varad was an extremely bright student, well-liked within the institute community and well on his way to building a successful future. We are shocked by the tragic and untimely end of this life. We wish to inform you that Delhi Police is investigating the suicide... We are completely with you in this hour of grief and are fully committed to justice."

IIT-Delhi's response to Varad's letter

Southwest Delhi DCP Rohit Meena, too, confirmed to The Quint that they had received the letter – and a formal complaint was registered regarding the death of the student. "We have begun the investigation," the DCP said.

In response to Banerjee's email on 6 March, however, Varad's parents wrote that they were "deeply disappointed" with the administration for forwarding the complaint to the police.

"Are you saying that all violations of internal IIT policies are offenses under CrPC that require police investigation and there is no role for internal investigation by IITs on disciplinary grounds?"

Varad's parents to IIT-Delhi

'No Real Action'

At least 33 students have died by suicide across the Indian Institutes of Technology (IITs) since 2018, according to data presented in Rajya Sabha in March 2023 by the Ministry of Education.

Varad's death is the fourth such suicide case in IIT-Delhi since July 2023.

• In November 2023, 21-year-old son Panav Jain, a final-year BTech student, allegedly died by suicide, due to "mental stress caused due to academic pressure."

• In September 2023, 20-year-old Anil Kumar had died by suicide in his hostel room at IIT-Delhi. Kumar, a BTech student was allegedly under pressure as he wasn't able to complete his credits to secure his degree. 

• Earlier, in July, another IIT-Delhi student, Ayush Ashna had died by suicide.

Dheeraj Singh, an IIT-Kanpur alumnus and suicide prevention expert, explained to The Quint that the fact that IIT-Delhi has reported four cases in less than a year "indicates that students are under severe stress."

"Stress could be due to various reasons. 70% is due to academic-related, and 30% due to other reasons (personal, family, etc). In Varad's case, he had a very good CGPA of 8.9 out of 10, and yet he was mistreated by his guides as alleged by his parents. Ayush and Anil were from Math and Computing Department, where this is a culture of mass-failing students. Panav was struggling to get projects from his faculty. There is very little flexibility for students. There's also a mismatch between credits and course loads."

Dheeraj Singh told The Quint

Soon after Varad's death, IIT-Delhi postponed the mid-semester examinations, scheduled in the third week of February, by a week.

On 22 February, IIT-Delhi students organised an open house discussion with the director of the institute to flag issues like mental health among students, concerns regarding placement, lack of flexibility in choosing their guides, and more.

In addition, a draft of the demands made by the students pointed out the glaring social alienation faced by students, especially those coming from marginalised backgrounds.

The Quint has learnt that on Tuesday, 5 March, IIT-Delhi set up a committee of external members and specialists to "study the institutional processes and environment in the context of the recent deaths by suicide on campus and to suggest remedial measures."

In the circular, accessed by The Quint, IIT-Delhi listed 12 members as part of the committee which includes mental health researchers, alumni, faculty, and student representatives.

However, students said that while the committee was a welcome move, they felt that it does not address the allegations levelled against professors.

An MTech student, on the condition of anonymity said, "We have so far not seen any real action taken after the open house to address the need for enquiry. We are unsure how this will pan out."

"One of the main demands that we raised was for a separate enquiry committee to look into the allegations against Varad's guide. This committee, however, is a general one. This committee was discussed at the admin level months ago," another PhD student, who did not wish to be named, told The Quint.

When the allegations against the professors were brought up in the open house, students claimed to The Quint that authorities allegedly didn't respond and moved to the next question.

"We did bring up the need for an enquiry into Varad's death at the open house and they did reply saying that an inquiry is not something they do, though the students pointed out precedents such as in IIT Madras where an inquiry found a professor guilty."

A PhD Student claimed to The Quint

When contacted, IIT-Delhi officials refused to comment.

Dheeraj Singh said, "There is a need for an impartial, independent and external probe to find breaches in IIT's policies. The least it could do is to fix internal accountability to make the system more robust. The police cannot do that, because they look at it purely from a crime side. Justice is important to prevent the trend and improve culture to healthy levels."

Meanwhile, Sanjay and Bharti Nerkar want justice for what had happened to their son Varad.

"We cannot bring our son back. But what we need is justice. We want to ensure that no other family has to go through what we are...this needs to stop," Sanjay told The Quint.