Former IIT Kanpur director Professor Indranil Manna has recalled a tense three-day standoff with student leader Ashutosh Ranka following the tragic death of a student on campus. The retrospective look into the historical agitation comes amid contemporary student unrest at premier Indian engineering institutions like IIT Bombay and IIT Delhi concerning student welfare and administrative accountability.
Reflecting on the episode that occurred around 2016-17, Professor Manna described how Ranka, who served as the president of the Students' Gymkhana at the time, placed the administration under intense pressure. According to Manna's account, the protests began after a student complained of back pain following a cricket match, visited the health centre where he received a painkiller, and subsequently collapsed and died while attempting to return for further assistance.
Upon hearing that approximately 2,000 students had gathered to protest, Manna returned to handle an agitation that lasted continuously for two nights and two days. Despite the heavy pressure brought by Ranka and the protesting students, Manna maintained that administrations must distinguish between patiently listening to grievances and automatically conceding to every demand made during a demonstration.
An official investigation was subsequently launched by the Ministry of Human Resource Development, utilizing a committee led by an AIIMS doctor. The inquiry determined that the student's electrocardiogram indicated a potential chance of survival and commended the health centre staff for performing the test. Manna noted that within ten days of the findings, Ranka and about ten other students returned to apologize.
Drawing parallels to recent campus controversies, Manna argued that institutional heads must have the courage to support faculty members when they are acting correctly, rather than bending to immediate demands for termination before facts are established.
Ashutosh Ranka studied Materials Engineering at IIT Kanpur from 2013 to 2017, serving as the Students' Gymkhana president between 2016 and 2017. Following his graduation, his professional path included consulting roles with McKinsey & Company, an associate fellowship at the Delhi Legislative Assembly, work with Gavi, the Vaccine Alliance, and obtaining a Master of Public Administration from the London School of Economics and Political Science.