IIT Bombay: Candle march for Darshan Solanki's justice

A first-year student of IIT Bombay reportedly committed suicide on February 12 after allegedly facing harassment and several other issues while on campus. The demand for justice for the student is growing and now Gujarat Congress MLA and Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani on Sunday led a candle march in Maninagar for justice for the deceased student Darshan Solanki.

Amid the growing demand for justice for Darshan Solanki, a first-year student of IIT Bombay who reportedly died by suicide, the Gujarat Congress MLA and Dalit leader Jignesh Mevani on Sunday led a candle march in the Maninagar area seeking justice for the deceased student of the prestigious engineering college.

“After the support I received today, I am confident my son will get justice. My only demand is a Special Investigation Team (SIT) must be formed to probe the reasons which led to my son’s death. Representatives of the (Gujarat) government also met me and assured me of justice,” the deceased student’s father Ramesh Solanki told reporters, as reported by The Print.

The student used to live with his parents in the Uttamnagar locality of Maninagar. The candle march started at Uttamnagar Slum Quarters in Maninagar and ended at Dr B R Ambedkar’s statue in Sarangpur. BJP MLA from Maninagar, Amul Bhatt, also joined the march.

The Dalit leader questioned the Maharashtra government, of which the Bharatiya Janata Party is a part, for not forming an SIT or not registering an FIR in the case till now.

“It is a matter of pain the family has to come on roads to make their demands heard. It is equally painful the BJP government in Maharashtra is not ready to form an SIT or register an FIR. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi has not said anything about this incident. This discrimination against SC, ST and OBC students in educational institutes must end,” he said.

“Darshan was a bright student and we are in constant touch with his family. We are also in favour of a probe. The Gujarat CM has sent a message to the family through us and the family has told us they will meet the CM after completion of some rituals,” said Amul Bhatt.

Read more:

• Cry for justice to IIT Bombay student grows louder, #JusticeForDarshanSolanki trends on Twitter
• Student group wants details of committee set up to probe IIT Bombay student’s death