MUMBAI: “I want justice. My son was killed, tortured,” the mother of an IIT Bombay student said after her son was found dead in his hostel room, hours after he was allegedly caught using a mobile phone during an examination.

The student's death triggered protests on the Powai campus, with students demanding an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding his death.

The student was found hanging from the ceiling fan in his room on the Powai campus on Friday evening, an official said.

He was a second-year BTech student in the Energy Science and Engineering department,

The student's mother alleged that her son was tortured. "My son was killed, tortured. I want justice," she told new agency PTI.

Mobile phone found during exam

According to a statement from

IIT Bombay, the student had allegedly uploaded the examination question paper to an AI platform to seek answers during the exam.

The institute said he was found using a mobile phone in the examination hall earlier on Friday. However, no disciplinary action was initiated against him, it stated.

The instructor and the Head of the Department discussed the matter with the student and counselled him, assuring him that the incident would not adversely affect his academic career.

He subsequently returned to his hostel room and was found dead later in the evening.

Hostel mates alerted authorities after no response

The official said the student's death came to light after his hostel mates received no response from his room and alerted the authorities, who then informed the police.

No suicide note was recovered from the spot, the official said. Powai police have registered an accidental death report (ADR) and sent the body for post-mortem examination.

IIT Bombay student death triggers protests

The incident also triggered protests on campus, with students demanding an inquiry into the circumstances surrounding the death.

"The Institute is extending support to the student's friends, classmates, faculty members, and others affected by this tragic incident," the institute said in its statement.

The circumstances surrounding the death are being probed, it added.

Third reported death in seven months

The death is the third reported case of suicide at the IIT Bombay campus in Powai in seven months.

In February, a second-year student died by suicide in a hostel.

In July 2026, at the beginning of the new semester, a 20-year-old second-year BTech student also ended his life.

(With PTI inputs)