Mumbai, Apr 15 A court here on Wednesday framed charges against IIT Bombay student Arman Khatri for abetting the suicide of fellow student Darshan Solanki in 2023.
Khatri will now face trial for offences under the Indian Penal Code for abetment to suicide and relevant provisions of the Scheduled Castes and the Scheduled Tribes (Prevention of Atrocities) Act.
The charges were framed by additional sessions judge G G Bhansali after he pleaded not guilty.
Darshan Solanki, a first-year student of BTech (Chemical) course, allegedly jumped to his death from the seventh floor of a hostel building on the IIT Bombay campus in Powai on February 12, 2023, a day after semester exams ended.
Three weeks later, a special investigation team (SIT) of Mumbai Police found a one-line note from Solanki's room blaming Khatri for his death.
Khatri was arrested on April 9, 2023, on charges of abetment to suicide and criminal intimidation under the Indian Penal Code and also the provisions of the Prevention of Atrocities Act.
Investigation revealed that Solanki had allegedly made a communal remark during a conversation with Khatri, following which the latter threatened him with a paper cutter. Solanki was visibly scared and suffered from fever that night, police claimed.
Solanki also sent WhatsApp messages to Khatri apologising for the remark and saying that he was leaving Mumbai, police said.
