The Nagpur Bench of the Bombay High Court has set aside the suspension of an MBA student of the Indian Institute of Management (IIM), Nagpur, over the alleged recovery of a banned substance from his hostel room. The court said the student was not given a sufficient opportunity to present his defence. A Division Bench of Justice Urmila Joshi-Phalke and Justice Raj D Wakode passed the order while hearing a petition filed by Prayas Thakur, a second-year MBA student enrolled in the 2025-27 batch.

 

The student claimed that he had maintained a clean academic record. On August 30, 2026, officials of the institute searched his shared hostel room while he was attending a class. According to his petition, a banned substance was allegedly found under pillow on his bed. Thakur argued that the authorities did not disclose the nature, composition or quantity of the substance. No laboratory report was provided, he claimed. He also said the search took place in his absence and without a student representative. Thakur contended that he was not given a proper opportunity to explain his position before the Student Activity Committee and the appellate authorities.

 

The institute initially expelled him from the program. Following appeals, the Director reduced the punishment to suspension from Terms 5 and 6 for academic year 2026-27. Advocate Radhika Bajaj, appearing for Thakur, argued that the authorities had failed to follow a fair procedure. The institute’s counsel, Harish Thakur, defended the earlier orders but agreed that a fresh inquiry could be conducted after giving the student a proper hearing. The Bench observed that the student had not received a sufficient opportunity to present his defence. The High Court quashed the orders passed by the Director, the Student Activity Committee and the Academic Programme and Grievance Redressal Committee. The court directed the Chairperson of the Student Activity Committee to conduct a fresh inquiry, consider the evidence and pass a reasoned order within four weeks. Meanwhile, IIM-Nagpur has been directed to allow the student to attend classes and stay in the hostel. The court clarified that the committee must decide the matter after hearing his defence.