TN Congress to protest in front of IIT –Madras against student suicides

Chennai, Feb 20 (BPNS)

The Tamil Nadu Congress Committee has decided to conduct a silent march in front of the Indian Institute of Technology –Madras (IIT-M) in protest to the repeated deaths of students by suicide.

Recently two students have committed suicide in the premier technological institute of the country.

The State president of Tamil Nadu Congress (SC Wing), M.P. Ranjith Kumar in a statement said, “ As per a recent data submitted in parliament, from 2014 to 2021, 122 students have committed suicide in Union government institutes. Of this 71 belong to the SC, ST and OBC communities. In the same period, 34 students have committed suicide in IITs and of them 18 belongs to SC,ST and OBCs.”

The Congress leader in the statement said that caste dominance and caste atrocities are taking the toll of Dalit and backward students in premium institutes of the country under the Union government.

It may be noted that Darshan Solanki( 18) a student of IIT- Mumbai had jumped to his death on February 12 from the seventh floor building of his hotel room in Powari, IIT- Mumbai campus.

A post graduate student in Computer Engineering at IIT- Madras, Stephen Sunny (24) had taken his life by hanging from his hostel room. Another Btech student at IIT- Madras had tried to end his life by consuming sleeping pills.

With the Congress conducting a silent protest march towards the premier institute, the issue will be discussed across the political and bureaucratic spectrum on what ails in IITs and whether students are being tormented due to their religion.