Why students need to be taught to recognise and reject abusive speech
This opinion piece argues that the prevalence of abusive language in Indian public life is a failure of the education system. The author suggests that schools and universities should formally teach the ethics of language rather than focusing solely on grammar and employability.
Why it matters
It addresses the intersection of cultural norms, education policy, and the quality of public discourse in a modern democracy.
When Prime Minister Narendra Modi released a video recently expressing shock at the profanity hurled at him during the recent NEET protests at Jantar Mantar — and, more pointedly, at his surprise that young girls had used such language — he called it, in his own words, a “cultural shock.” The language of abuse in India has no gender, caste, or creed; it is one of our public culture’s most reliable products, not a deviation from it. Shooter Manu Bhaker recently posted on X that the language we choose reflects our personality and the kind of person we are. If true, the ease with which Indians reach for abuse is not a mystery of national character. It is a gap in national education.
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