IIM Calcutta Allows Rape Accused Student on Bail to Attend Classes

Kolkata – The Indian Institute of Management Calcutta (IIM-C) has decided to permit a student, currently out on bail in a rape case, to resume attending classes from 28 July, following a decision taken by the institute’s Academic Council last week.

The student, Paramanand Mahaveer Toppannawar (26), a second-year MBA candidate, had approached the institute seeking permission to return to his academic programme after being released on bail.

While the Academic Council has approved his return to classes, it has denied him access to the campus hostel, citing the ongoing investigation. The hostel in question is a co-educational facility, and authorities deemed it inappropriate for him to return there until the Special Investigation Team (SIT) of Kolkata Police concludes its probe.

 “He will be allowed to use academic facilities like the library, but will not be provided accommodation on campus,” an IIM-C official confirmed. The student’s request for compensatory attendance for the days he missed during incarceration (12–22 July) will be considered separately at a later date.

The council’s decision was based on legal advice and was made during a meeting chaired by acting director Professor Saibal Chattopadhyay, along with deans and senior faculty.

The case took a complicated turn after the woman – who identified herself as a counsellor not formally associated with IIM-C – failed to assist the police investigation and later disappeared. Her father has since claimed that she was coerced into filing the complaint and that no incident occurred on the alleged date.

Paramanand has approximately eight months remaining in the prestigious two-year postgraduate programme. The case remains under investigation, and IIM-C has reiterated that its decision is provisional and subject to developments in the legal process.