Police investigating the alleged suicide of an Indian Institute of Technology (IIT) Bombay student on Wednesday claimed he spoke to his father for approximately 30 minutes before taking his own life, but made no mention of caste discrimination, news agency PTI reported.
According to an official, the police have begun recording testimony from his dormitory roommates in order to determine what prompted the student, Darshan Solanki, to take such drastic measures, as stated in the report.
A student organisation claimed Solanki, a Dalit, was subjected to caste prejudice on campus, but the IIT Bombay administration denied the claim, as per the report.
On Sunday, the 18-year-old student allegedly committed suicide by jumping from the seventh storey of a hostel building on the top institute's Powai campus (February 12). Solanki was a first-year BTech student from Ahmedabad (Chemical).
According to a senior police official involved in the investigation, more than a dozen people's statements have been recorded thus far, the PTI report said.
He claimed that police had questioned Solanki's parents, who had visited the campus following the incident if they had any complaints against anyone, the report added further. According to police statements, the student's parents did not oppose the investigation or show uncertainty about their son's death.
As per the report, Solanki had spoken for half an hour with his father before taking his own life, but he had not mentioned encountering discrimination at the institute, stated the police official.
According to the report, Solanki had informed his father that he would be returning home on February 15.
His remains were brought to Ahmedabad, where death rites were performed on Tuesday, according to the official.
"Police are investigating the matter thoroughly, and every aspect will be examined to figure out the exact cause of the suicide," PTI quoted the official as saying.
(With Inputs From PTI)