IIT Bombay Student Suicide: Darshan Solanki told his mother about caste discrimination

NEW DELHI: Indian Institute of Technology Bombay (IITB) student Darshan Solanki who allegedly committed suicide had told his mother that caste-based discrimination existed on the institute's campus, a chargesheet filed in the case by police has said. He also told his mother during telephonic conversations that the behaviour of fellow students changed when they learned about his caste, it claimed.

Solnaki's mother's statement is part of the chargesheet filed by the city police on Tuesday before a special court for Scheduled Castes and Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act. The chargesheet named fellow student Arman Khatri who is out on bail after being arrested for allegedly abetting the suicide.

Solanki, a first-year student of B-Tech (Chemical) course who hailed from Ahmedabad, allegedly jumped to death from the seventh floor of a hostel building on IITB campus in suburban Powai on February 12, 2023, a day after the semester exams ended. Police claimed that Khatri had allegedly threatened to kill Darshan after the latter spoke `offensively' about religion.

In her statement to police, Solanki's mother said that during a telephonic conversation in December 2022, Darshan told his sister that there was caste-based discrimination at the premier institute. When his friends came to know of his caste, there was a change in their behaviour, Solanki's mother said in her statement. Darshan again spoke about this to his sister when he visited them in January 2023 during Makar Sankranti holiday, the chargesheet said. On February 12, he spoke to his mother on phone around 12.20 pm and said he would visit home on February 14 and they should invite all their relatives for a get-together, his mother told police.

Only two hours later, Darshan's father got a call informing that his son had suffered a fall, she said in the statement. Darshan's sister and aunt too, in their statements, claimed that he faced discrimination and observed change in the behaviour of other students when they learnt of his caste. He spoke about how he was enjoying his studies but also mentioned that some students and friends always told him that he was getting free education and taunted him, Solanki's aunt told police. The chargesheet included statements of 55 witnesses including some students and professors.

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