IIT Madras PhD scholar death: Inquiry panel seeks student testimonies

The five-member inquiry panel formed by the Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Madras to probe into the suicide of PhD student Sachin Jain has invited students and other stakeholders to share relevant information about the case anonymously, either online or in person, reports The New Indian Express.

Amal Manoharan, a research scholar from IIT Madras, who is the representative of the student body on the inquiry committee, has sent an email to the students providing assurance that any other person besides the committee members and the director will know who gave the statements. The director has promised immunity to students who appear before the committee, and the details the students share will be strictly confidential, reads the email.

What do students think about the committee?
However, IIT Madras students with whom TNIE spoke have expressed apprehension that the inquiry committee may not conduct an impartial probe as the panel mainly comprises bureaucrats. "Three out of the five members in the committee are former bureaucrats. The fourth member is a faculty member of the college and only one student representative is on the committee. How can we expect the bureaucrats and the faculty member to listen to the allegations against Sachin’s PhD guide and submit a fair report? The faculty member and bureaucrats will obviously favour the institute," said a PhD student

"The committee should have included at least two student representatives with whom students would have freely shared their inputs. They should have included someone from the judiciary, academicians and a human rights activist in the committee to ensure a fair probe, " said another PhD student. The students expressed that they are skeptical that the committee members will not ensure their confidentiality.

The committee members are former IPS officer G Thilakavathi, former IAS officers D Sabitha and Kannegi Packianathan, IIT Madras civil engineering department faculty Ravindra Gettu and research scholar Amal Manoharan.  

Jain was found dead in his rented house in Velachery on March 31. Jain's elder brother had allegedly blamed his PhD guide for exerting undue pressure on him. The students of IIT Madras had staged a protest on April 11 demanding an inquiry into his suicide, following which, the five-member committee was formed.