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‘Solanki and Khatri were close friends,’ claim IIT Bombay batchmates as Mumbai Police arrests student in suicide case

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Darshan’s father says a single boy cannot be the only reason behind his son’s demise.

Nearly two months after Darshan Solanki, a Dalit student of the Indian Institute of Technology-Bombay allegedly died by suicide, the Mumbai Police has arrested a fellow student identified as Armaan Iqbal Khatri on charges of abetment to suicide.

Arman Iqbal Khatri, an 18-year-old boy from Vile Parle, was named in the suicide note SIT had found inside the hostel room of the deceased student on March 26. In the suicide note, Darshan blamed Khatri for driving him to his death.

Though the probe is still on, IIT-B students who knew Arman recognise the latter as incapable of a crime.

According to some of Armaan’s batch mates, Arman and Darshan had become good friends, though Arman generally was a quiet student.“They both were close and Armaan knew that Darshan was going through depression due to his low grades,  in fact, Darshan took the drastic step, Arman was most affected,” said a friend of Aarman who did not wish to be named.

Darshan’s father Mr Ramesh Solanki had spoken to the mumbaipress earlier that SIT’s claim about Darshan having fought with Arman for three days, on 9, 10, and 11 February after which  Darshan met an unfortunate demise on February 12 cannot be the sole reason for the tragedy. “We have not been told anything about the reason behind this fight, but the SIT stated that Armaan threatened Darshan with a cutter in the hostel room. I believe that a single boy cannot be the only reason behind Darshan’s demise. This goes much deeper,” Mr. Ramesh told this newspaper today.

However, the claim about the knife is not entirely true, said the friends. “Apart from having silly fights common between friends, it never got serious and Aarman never pointed a knife at him.”

On February 12, 2023, Darshan was reported to have jumped from the seventh floor of his hostel building at IIT-B and his body was found by the security guards who saw him in a pool of blood. Darshan from Ahmedabadwas a first-year student of the B.Tech course.

Initially, after the incident, the Powai police station registered an Accidental Death Report (ADR). However, after the suicide note was found, a new direction was given to the investigation.

The Ambedkar Periyar Phule Study Circle (APPSC) of IIT-Bombay was the first to raise the issue of Darshan’s death as a case of caste discrimination and called it “institutional murder” – a charge which was denied by the institute.

Crime

CBI arrests two CGST officers in Mumbai for accepting Rs 25,000 bribe

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Mumbai, Oct 8: The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) on Wednesday said it has arrested a Superintendent and an Inspector of the Central Goods and Services Tax (CGST) in Mumbai, for allegedly demanding and accepting a bribe of Rs 25,000 from a businessman.

According to a CBI statement, the arrested officials have been identified as Superintendent Vikram and Inspector Lav Kumar Chittoria, both posted in the CGST Santacruz Division.

The case was registered on Tuesday following a complaint from a textile trader who had applied online for GST registration of his firm on September 24, the statement said.

The complainant alleged that during a field inspection on October 3, Chittoria demanded Rs 25,000 as illegal gratification for himself and his superior officer.

The officers allegedly warned that the GST registration certificate would not be issued unless the bribe was paid.

Acting on the complaint, the CBI laid a trap and caught both the accused red-handed while accepting the bribe amount inside the CGST West Mumbai Office on Tuesday.

The bribe money was recovered from their possession. Following the arrests, searches were carried out at the offices and residences of both officials, during which several incriminating documents were also seized.

A CBI spokesperson said that both officers were taken into custody for interrogation and will be produced before a competent court in Mumbai later in the day.

“Further investigation is underway to determine whether other officials were involved in the bribery racket and to trace possible links with similar cases,” the official added.

The agency reiterated its zero-tolerance policy towards corruption in government departments and urged citizens to report any instance of demand for bribes through its dedicated helpline and online portal.

Just a few days ago, in its crackdown on bribery in government offices, the CBI arrested two senior government officials of the Ministry of Defence and a railway hospital, in two separate cases of bribery.

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Crime

Mumbai Hit-And-Run Case: 21-Year-Old Ruia College Student Dies After Being Abandoned On Road Following Accident At Sion

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Mumbai: A 21-year-old college student, Mayur Kishor Rai, pursuing his undergraduate studies at Ruia College in Matunga, tragically died in a hit-and-run accident on the evening of October 4. The incident occurred near the Sion Bridge incline on Dr. B.A. Road, Sion East. The Sion Police have registered a case and are investigating the matter.

According to the FIR, Mayur, a resident of Lallubhai Compound in Mankhurd, lived with his family and used to commute to college on a KTM Duke 250 motorcycle (MH-03-EJ-5365) registered in his sister Deepa’s name. On the day of the incident, Mayur left for college on the bike and informed his mother, Sunita Rai,45, a social worker, around 6:30 PM that he was on his way home.

However, at around 8:15 PM, Sunita received a call from an unknown person using Mayur’s mobile, informing her that his bike had met with an accident near Sion Bridge.

The family rushed to the location by taxi but could not find Mayur at the spot. While on their way to Sion Hospital, they spotted his motorcycle near the zebra crossing on Dr. B.A. Road, where police were already present. Upon getting down from the taxi, the family found Mayur lying unconscious beside a small tempo.

An ambulance called by the police arrived shortly, and Mayur was rushed to Sion Hospital. Unfortunately, the doctors declared him dead on arrival.

According to traffic police patrolling the area, some bystanders had informed them about the accident and mentioned that an injured person was being taken to the hospital in a tempo. The tempo in question bore the registration number MH-48-CB-3469.

Investigations revealed that after the accident, local bystanders had placed the injured Mayur in the tempo for transportation. However, when no one accompanied him to the hospital, the frightened tempo driver allegedly offloaded Mayur near the zebra crossing and left him there unattended.

Police have filed a case against the unknown vehicle driver for causing death by negligent and rash driving, under relevant sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and the Motor Vehicles Act. Efforts are ongoing to identify the vehicle involved in the hit-and-run.

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Crime

Mumbai Crime: RCF And Tilak Nagar Police Bust Illegal Prostitution Racket At Chembur Bar; Manager, Owner And Customer Arrested

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Mumbai: The Mumbai police have uncovered an illegal prostitution racket being run under the guise of a bar and restaurant at Pramila Bar and Restaurant located on RC Marg, Chembur. The RCF police, acting on a tip-off, raided the premises and apprehended the bar manager, bar owner, and a customer during the operation.

According to the complaint filed by Police Constable Amol Khatke,36, attached to the Crime Detection Unit of the RCF police station, the raid was carried out on the evening of October 4 at 6:45 PM by a joint team from RCF and Tilak Nagar police stations.

Police Inspector Mausami Patil of RCF police station had received credible information that prostitution activities were being conducted at the bar. Inspector Manisha Kulkarni from Tilak Nagar Police Station, designated as a Special Police Officer under the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act (ITPA) and Government Resolution dated March 14, 2006, participated in the joint operation.

To confirm the illegal activities, police deployed a decoy customer, a 32-year-old man residing near Atop Hill Church, Kokari Agar, Mumbai, to the bar. Upon approaching bar manager Nishikant Sadanand Sahu,43, a resident of Chembur Camp, the decoy was informed that the charge for sexual services was Rs 1,000.

The decoy agreed and was directed to the first floor of the establishment where he ordered a drink. When a female bartender approached and engaged in inappropriate conduct, the police team raided the premises immediately. The woman, aged 41 and a resident of Ambedkar Nagar, Mankhurd, was caught accepting Rs1,000 from the decoy. The money was seized as evidence.

In total, eight adult women were found working at the bar, allegedly involved in prostitution. These women hailed from various localities, including Chembur, Tilak Nagar, Mankhurd and Ulhasnagar in Thane.

During interrogation, the women revealed that their involvement was facilitated through acquaintances engaged in prostitution from their residential areas.

They claimed they were introduced to the bar manager, Nishikant Sahu, who in turn confessed to operating the prostitution racket in collaboration with bar owner Vasant Chandrashekhar Shetty.

Police have registered a case against the accused under Section 144(2) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS), and Sections 3, 4, and 5 of the Immoral Traffic (Prevention) Act. Further investigation into the racket is currently underway.

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