What Is Management Doing: SC Questions IIT Kharagpur, Sharda University Over Student Suicides

(MENAFN- IANS) New Delhi, July 28 (IANS) The Supreme Court on Monday expressed serious concern over rising student suicides in educational institutions, questioning the management of IIT Kharagpur and Sharda University over their handling of recent cases. A Bench comprising Justice J.B. Pardiwala and Justice R. Mahadevan, while hearing a suo motu case, demanded accountability from both institutions.

“Why are students committing suicide? What is the management doing?” the Bench asked pointedly, directing both Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal police to file detailed status reports within four weeks.

In the case of Sharda University, the court was informed by Amicus Curiae Aparna Bhatt that the father of the deceased dental student had lodged an FIR two hours after the incident. A suicide note was found, and two individuals have been arrested. However, the court criticised the university for not following prior Supreme Court directives.

“Did the students inform the father? Why didn't the college management communicate this? Is it not their responsibility to inform the police and the parents immediately?” the court asked, raising concerns over administrative negligence.

The Bench stopped short of further comment, noting that investigations are still underway.

In the IIT Kharagpur case, Bhatt informed the court that the local police had not provided her with any substantive updates, drawing further criticism from the Bench.

On July 21, the Supreme Court had taken suo motu cognisance of two student suicides - one involving a fourth-year engineering student from the premier IIT Kharagpur and the other a second-year BDS student from Sharda University in Greater Noida. The top court had then sought explanations from the institutions on whether police had been promptly informed to facilitate criminal investigations.

The court also warned that failure to register First Information Reports (FIRs) without delay could result in contempt proceedings against the institutions involved.

Ritam Mandal, a fourth-year mechanical engineering student enrolled in a five-year dual degree program at IIT Kharagpur, died by suicide on July 18. He was a resident of Kolkata. His death marks the fourth such incident on the IIT Kharagpur campus since January 2025.

Earlier this year, on January 12, the body of Shaon Mallick, a third-year electronics engineering student, was found hanging in his hostel room.

In Greater Noida, Jyoti Sharma, a second-year BDS student at Sharda University, also died by suicide in her hostel, raising further alarm over student mental health and institutional accountability.

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