IIT-B student's death: Family says he faced caste discrimination, might have been murdered
Ahmedabad, Feb 15: The family of an IIT-Bombay student who died allegedly by suicide has claimed that he faced discrimination at the premier institute for belonging to a Scheduled Caste (SC) community and that there is a strong possibility that he was "murdered".
The Powai-based institute in Mumbai has rejected allegations of bias and has urged students to wait till the police and internal probes are over.
Darshan Solanki (18) died allegedly after jumping off the seventh floor of a hostel building on the Powai campus of the IIT on Sunday. Hailing from Ahmedabad, he was a first-year student of B.Tech (Chemical) course.
His family members, who live in the Maninagar area of Ahmedabad city, claimed that though Darshan faced "discrimination for being a Dalit", he could not have taken his own life.
"I strongly believe that my son was murdered. Hours before his death, he had called us but he talked normally and gave no indication that he was under any tension. However, when he came home during Makar Sankranti, he informed his aunt that other students were keeping their distance from him. They were upset because Darshan made such progress," said his mother Tarlikaben Solanki.
Darshan's father Rameshbhai alleged that the institute as well as hospital authorities had tried to cover up the matter and performed a post-mortem even before he reached Mumbai.
"I do not think that it was a case of suicide. If you fall from the seventh floor, you will sustain many injuries. But, when I saw my son's face after the post-mortem, I did not see any injuries. How is that possible? Moreover, the PM (post-mortem) was done in a haste and that too without our permission. I was allowed to see only his face after the PM," claimed Rameshbhai.
Darshan's sister Jahnvi said the IIT-B management kept changing its stand about the reasons behind her brother's death.
"His body was not shown to my parents, neither before nor after the PM. Earlier, the institute told us that he fell down the stairs. Then, the principal told us that my brother jumped from the building. Do they think we are fools? It seems that my brother was murdered," she said.
His aunt Divyaben said Darshan once told her that other students had started maintaining distance upon learning that he belonged to an SC community.
"In January, he told me that other students were jealous of him. They used to ask Darshan how come you are studying for free while we have to spend a lot of money?'. They used to taunt him and ask him how he secured admission. Darshan was harassed there. But, he could not have taken his life due to such tension. It seems he was first murdered and then thrown from the building," she claimed.
IIT-Bombay on Tuesday rejected charges of caste bias in the institute, saying initial inputs from friends suggested that there was no discrimination, and urged students to wait till police and internal probes were over.
Earlier on Wednesday, Union Minister of State for Social Justice Ramdas Athawale visited IIT-B and demanded a thorough probe into Darshan's death. Athawale said Darshan had called his father on Sunday and informed him that except for one paper, his other first semester exams went well.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
Accused gunman at correspondents' dinner was believed to be targeting top officials, Blanche says
Washington (AP): The accused gunman who tried to storm the ballroom at the White House Correspondents' Association dinner with guns and knives travelled across the country before the event and is believed to have been targeting members of the Trump administration, acting Attorney General Todd Blanche said Sunday.
Blanche also said officials believe the suspect traveled by train from California to Chicago and then on to Washington, where in recent days he checked in as a guest to the hotel where one of Washington's glitziest events was being held Saturday night.
Investigators have not publicly named the suspect, but two law enforcement officials familiar with the matter have identified him to The Associated Press as 31-year-old Cole Tomas Allen of Torrance, California.
Law enforcement officials who have examined the gunman's electronic devices and his writings preliminarily believe he intended to target administration members in attendance at the dinner. He attempted to charge into the cavernous ballroom at the Washington Hilton but was tackled to the ground in a chaotic scene that resulted in shots being fired, President Donald Trump being hurried off the stage and guests ducking for cover beneath their tables.
“It does appear that he did in fact set out to target folks who work in the administration, likely including the president,” Blanche told NBC's “Meet the Press.”
The suspect is believed to have purchased the firearms he carried within the last couple of years, Blanche said. He is not being cooperative and is expected to face multiple charges on Monday.
Video posted by Trump showed the suspect running past security barricades as Secret Service agents ran toward him. One officer was shot in a bullet-resistant vest but was recovering, officials said. The gunman was taken into custody and was not injured, but was being evaluated at a hospital, police said.
“He failed,” Blanche said on CBS's “Face the Nation.” “Law enforcement did their jobs.”
Social media posts that appear to match the suspect show he is a highly educated tutor and amateur video game developer.
A May 2025 profile photo of Allen appears to match the appearance of the man in a photo of the alleged attacker being taken into custody that was posted Saturday night by Trump. The photo, posted to the social networking site LinkedIn, shows him in a cap and gown after graduating with a master's degree in computer science from California State University, Dominguez Hills.
Allen earned a bachelor's degree in 2017 in mechanical engineering from the California Institute of Technology in Pasadena. He listed his involvement there in a Christian student fellowship and a campus group that battled with Nerf guns.
The shooting at the security barricades happened minutes after the event got underway.
The Secret Service and other authorities swarmed the room as guests ducked under tables by the hundreds. Gasps echoed through the ballroom as guests realized something was happening. Hundreds of journalists immediately got on phones to call in information.
“Out of the way, sir!” someone yelled. Others yelled to duck. From one corner, a “God Bless America” chant began as the president was escorted offstage. Outside the hotel, members of the National Guard and other authorities flooded the area as helicopters circled overhead.
After an initial attempt to resume the event, it was scrapped for the night and will be rescheduled.
_vb_69.jpeg)
