Athawale seeks probe into IIT Bombay student’s ‘suicide’, caste bias charge

Union Minister of State for Social Justice Ramdas Athawale has demanded a thorough probe into the alleged suicide of an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay student and allegations that he was facing caste discrimination in the elite institute.

Darshan Solanki (18) allegedly jumped off the seventh floor of a hostel building on IIT-Bombay’s Powai campus on Sunday (February 12). Solanki, who was from Ahmedabad, was a first-year student of the BTech (Chemical) course. A day after his death, a student group alleged that he was driven to suicide because of discrimination against Scheduled Caste students on the campus.

The IIT Bombay authorities on Tuesday rejected the charges of caste bias and said initial that inputs from Solanki’s friends suggested there was no discrimination. He urged students to wait till police and internal probes into the case were over.

“Suicides increasing at IITs”

However, Athawale on Wednesday (February 15) visited the campus and told reporters, “I have demanded a thorough probe into the matter. There are allegations of the BTech student facing caste discrimination. I have asked the authorities to probe this angle as well.

Action should be taken, if required, he said.

Also read: IIT Madras student found dead in hostel room, suicide suspected

The minister said Solanki called his father on Sunday and told him that except one paper, his other first-semester exams had gone well. His father apparently told him not to worry and that he would visit Mumbai soon. However, half an hour later, Solanki was dead, he said.

“It is a very serious incident. In 2014, a Dalit student ended his life in a similar way. Six months back, another student outside IIT Bombay died by suicide. I am also aware that two students from IIT Madras died by suicide. Such incidents are increasing and they should be probed properly,” the minister said.

Athawale added that he would try to arrange some financial aid for Solanki’s family from the Maharashtra and Gujarat governments. “I have sought an appointment with Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis,” he said, adding that action should be taken if required.

IIT rubbishes discrimination charge

The Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle, a student group, has called Solanki’s death an “institutional murder.” However, the institute on Tuesday said it takes utmost precautions to make the campus as inclusive as possible, and it has a zero tolerance for any discrimination by faculty.

Also read: Rajasthan: 17-yr-old NEET aspirant dies by suicide in Kota

“Caste identity is never disclosed to anyone (whether students or faculty) once the admission is done, and the institute sensitises students to not seek proxy information, such as ranks in entrance exams.

It also gives strong warnings against discrimination right from the time students enter IIT. While no steps can be 100 per cent effective, discrimination by students, if at all it occurs, is an exception,” the premier institute has said.

IIT Bombay has an SC/ST student cell where students can seek help if they face any issues, including discrimination. There have been very few complaints to the cell, whether against faculty or other students, over the past many years. Only one case was found to have substance, and strict action was taken, the institute said in the statement.

(With agency inputs)