Mumbai: Student group highlights caste discrimination at IIT Bombay amid student 'suicide'

Mumbai: In an incident, which sent shockwaves across Mumbai, an 18-year-old IIT Bombay student jumped from his hostel building on Sunday, February 12 at 1:30 PM.

The 18-year-old student, Darshan Solanki, who was in the chemical engineering department, had only completed three months at IIT Bombay.

Student group alleges caste discrimination issues at IIT Bombay

Though the police are currently investigating the case and finding out the reasons behind the incident, a student group has alleged caste discrimination as the deceased individual was from the Scheduled Caste community.

"We mourn the loss of an 18-year-old dalit student, Darshan Solanki, who joined @iitbombay 3 months back for his BTech. We must understand that this is not a personal/individualised issue, but an institutional murder," said the tweet by Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC), IIT Bombay.

The organisation stated that the institute failed to make IIT Bombay inclusive for students fromarginalizeded communities, who face the most harassment.

"Despite our complaints, the institute did not care to make the space inclusive and safe for dalit bahujan adivasi students. First-year students face the most harassment in terms of anti-reservation sentiments and taunts of non-deserving and non- meritorious. There is a lack of representation of faculty and counsellors from the marginalized," said the tweet by APSSC.

More details awaited on case

The police have filed a case of accidental death for the time being and have speculated that academic pressure could be one of the reasons behind the student's suicide.

Many students from IIT Bombay did a candle march on the campus and gathered together at the common space of the institute in memory of the student at 10 PM, Sunday.