Cyberbullying and mental health:Do Indian laws protect students enough?
Students in today’s time are online as much as they are offline or perhaps more. Exposure to various online and social platforms is becoming a threat that was once dismissed as “online teasing”. Cyberbullying has become a serious affair that targets the mental health of students across India . This rightfully leads us to question, whether the laws of our country are evolving fast enough, to protect students .
The Mental Catastrophe
There are many different ways in which cyberbullying can occur , such as texting derogatory messages, forwarding confidential pictures or messages, sending threatening e-mails, or posting on social media forums, and is equally close to being in line with traditional bullying.
College and school Pupils are under constant academic pressure and parental expectations to achieve merit . With this constant pressure on back of their minds , cyberbullying further pushes their limits , breaking their confidence and inducing a feeling of isolation . In worse case scenarios , it pushes them towards anxiety , depression or even self harm.
In India , mental health is not given the importance that it needs , victims of this evil often remain silent due to their fear of being labelled as “dramatic” or “too sensitive”.This silence turns into suffocation and its signs are hardly recognised by families until it’s too late. Schools , colleges and universities are rarely equipped with skilled professionals that address or enlighten students about mental health.
Legal Standpoint
Indian laws don’t directly define or punish cyberbullying, especially among students. However there are a few provisions that may be applicable:
- Section 66C and 66D of the IT Act ( Identity theft and cheating )
- Section 67 ( publishing obscene material )
- section 354D IPC / 78 of BNS ( cyber stalking)
- Section 499 & 500 IPC / 356 of BNS ( defamation)
- POCSO Act ( if the bullying involves sexual content )
These laws only apply after the harm has been done , not a single one of them is preventive or cantered around students and even then , these young minds often don’t know the where and how of reporting such abuse . Victims might just choose to endure , schools remaining silent rather than being vocal and police may dismiss cases.
Clearly , the laws are nowhere near to being sufficient . These laws focus on providing reliefs to adults rather than students , especially minors , who need specific protection cantered around them . Schools and universities need to educate students on the legality and severity that surrounds cyberbullying, specialised reporting systems need to be established for the underage victims and educational institutions must implement mandatory policies regarding the same . There needs to be a well built Collab between lawmakers , tech companies , educational institutions and mental health professionals to prevent the abuse before it takes place.
Conclusion
The internet never sleeps and neither do the bullies . Safe and kind use of social and online platforms should be a must taught concept . Educational establishments must be equipped with full time counsellors and awareness sessions . The country also needs a separate legal framework or amendment that clearly defines cyberbullying, specifically against students. India needs to step up to protect these young minds from falling prey to online bullying and ensuring that their mental peace, dignity and privacy remains intact.
An Article by Bhargavi Panpaliya
1st year, Firodiya Law College, Pune
(Intern ingenuity program of J P Legal Associate)