A First Information Report (FIR) under section 'abetment of suicide' was finally registered in the alleged suicide case of Darshan Solanki, a Dalit student at the Indian Institute of Technology, Powai. The father of the deceased had claimed that despite several efforts the police were not registered an FIR.
Darshan had allegedly ended his life by jumping from the seventh floor of the hostel on February 12. The Powai police searched his hostel room but did not find any suicide note.
However, the Special Investigation Team (SIT) led by joint police commissioner Lakhmi Gautam found the suicide note on the last page of a sheaf of question-answer papers in which he had blamed a fellow hosteller Arman Iqbal Khatri for his death. Only Darshan's mother identified his handwriting.
FIR registered after more than a month
The police had said that to conduct further probes in the case regarding the alleged suicide note, the parents had to file a formal FIR at Powai police station. However, four days after the finding of the note was revealed, the parents were called to record their statement, and an FIR was registered.
"The FIR is registered against 'unknown' persons because we need to still conduct a thorough investigation before pointing at any definite suspect. We are also still awaiting the forensic report of the handwriting which will give more clarity in the case," said an official. The FIR was registered under various sections of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) including section 306 (Abetment of suicide) and the atrocities act.
A day before the FIR was registered, Darshan's father addressed a letter to the Chief Minister and several others, claiming that despite several efforts the police were not registering his FIR. He said several representations were made to all the authorities but in vain. He blamed Gautam and other senior police officials for indulging in delaying tactics and not registering his FIR.
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