IIT-B did not conduct proper probe into Solanki’s death, SIT tells court

The special investigation team has told a court that IIT-Bombay did not carry out a proper inquiry into the suicide of chemical engineering student Darshan Solanki. The SIT refuted a claim made by Solanki?s batchmate Arman Iqbal Khatri, who was arrested on charges of abetment to suicide, that the institute?s committee had found nothing against him in its probe and he was falsely implicated in the case.

The special investigation team (SIT) on Thursday told a court, set up under the SC/ST (Prevention of Atrocities) Act, that IIT-Bombay had not carried out a proper inquiry into the suicide of chemical engineering student Darshan Solanki.

Mumbai, India - March 04, 2023: Ramesh Solanki, father of deceased 18-year-old Dalit student Darshan Solanki, Tarlika (Mother of Darshan) and Janhvi (Sister of Darshan), during the agitation led by ex-MP Bhalchandra Mungekar along with ex-MP Hussain Dalwai, SFI, RPI (Secular) other student organizations, seeking justice for 18-year-old Dalit student who died by suicide on February 12 inside IIT Bombay at Azad Maidan, in Mumbai, India, on Saturday, March 04, 2023. (Photo by Anshuman Poyrekar/Hindustan Times) (Anshuman Poyrekar/HT PHOTO)

The SIT refuted the claim Solanki’s batchmate Arman Iqbal Khatri had made in his bail plea that the institute’s committee had found nothing against him in its probe and he was falsely implicated in the case. Khatri, who was arrested on charges of abetment to suicide, also claimed that the Powai police, who initially investigated the death, had ruled out foul play.

The public prosecutor said the IIT-B committee had spoken to only two of Solanki’s friends over phone to find out what happened but did not record their statements nor did it keep a formal record of the inquiry. Hence, the panel’s report had not no evidential value, the SIT said.

On the other hand, the public prosecutor said, the police relied on the chats exchanged between Solanki and Khatri and in his last message, Solanki had apologised to his batchmate for making a comment on his religion and said that he was permanently leaving the city.

In a related development, the special court on Thursday reserved its order on Khatri’s bail plea after Solanki’s parents did not file their response despite being issued a notice.

Solanki, 18, a chemical engineering student, jumped from the seventh-floor refuge area of his hostel building on February 12. Some students and a security guard immediately took him to the hospital on the IIT-B campus where doctors declared him brought dead.

On the next day, Solanki family members allegedly told the police that they did not suspect foul play. However, on February 16, when a Powai police team went to their residence in Ahmedabad, the family claimed that their son was a victim of caste-based discrimination prevailing at IIT-B.

On February 24, the state government set up a three-member SIT headed by Lakhmi Gautam, joint commissioner of police, crime branch. The SIT on March 3 found a purported suicide note in Solanki’s room. It said, “Arman has killed me.” Solanki, according to the police, had written the words on the backside of one of his question papers.

Khatri was arrested on April 9. On interrogation, the police learnt that Solanki had made an adverse comment on Khatri’s religion. Angry, Khatri had allegedly threatened Solanki with a paper cutter that he would not spare him after which Solanki died by suicide, an SIT officer said.