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Our seven asks of Parliament

Seven things every Indian child deserves — that the law already gives children abroad.

We compared the school anti-bullying frameworks of Sweden, Norway, South Korea, the United States, and Australia. India has no equivalent national law — only advisory guidelines. These are the seven specific protections we are asking the Indian Parliament to enshrine in a dedicated School Anti-Bullying Act.

  1. 1

    A statutory right to a safe learning environment.

    Every child in India should have a legally enforceable right to attend school free from bullying — physical, verbal, social, and online. Not a circular. A right.

    🌍 Around the world
    Norway, Education Act §9A: every pupil has the right to a safe and good school environment. The law is enforceable; the State can intervene against schools that fail.
    🇮🇳 In India today
    CBSE and NCPCR guidelines describe what a school 'should' do. Nothing in Indian statute gives a child the right to demand it.
  2. 2

    An active duty on every school to act — not wait to be told.

    Make it a legal duty of every school (public and private) to investigate suspected bullying the moment a teacher, parent, or peer signals it. No complaint letter required. No 'official channel' to file through first.

    🌍 Around the world
    Sweden, Education Act Chapter 6: schools have an active 'duty to investigate' as soon as bullying is suspected. South Korea's School Violence Prevention Act mandates schools to investigate even without a victim's complaint.
    🇮🇳 In India today
    Most Indian schools act only after a parent escalates — and even then, optionally. Power-imbalanced children stay silent and the system rewards silence.
  3. 3

    Cyberbullying covered explicitly — including off-campus, on-phone, after hours.

    Bring online bullying among schoolmates squarely under the school's legal duty, even when it happens outside school hours or off-premises. Morphed photos, group chats, anonymous accounts — all of it.

    🌍 Around the world
    United Kingdom, Education and Inspections Act 2006: head teachers have statutory power and duty to address pupil-on-pupil bullying including off-site and online conduct. Several US states (e.g., New Jersey, California) explicitly cover cyberbullying.
    🇮🇳 In India today
    IT Act sections and POCSO can be invoked after harm — but no preventive school-level legal duty exists for cyberbullying in India.
  4. 4

    An annual, published, audited anti-bullying plan in every school.

    Every school must publish, every year, a written anti-bullying plan with named responsible staff, escalation routes, and prevention training — and submit it to an independent education regulator that audits compliance.

    🌍 Around the world
    Sweden requires every school to publish an annual equal-treatment / anti-bullying plan; the Schools Inspectorate audits it. Australia's National Safe Schools Framework mandates each school adopt and document a plan.
    🇮🇳 In India today
    Most Indian schools have no public anti-bullying plan. Parents have no way to compare schools, and no regulator checks.
  5. 5

    Mandatory teacher training and a counsellor in every school.

    Make trauma-informed bullying-prevention training a mandatory part of teacher certification and continuous professional development. Mandate access to a trained counsellor for every school above a minimum size.

    🌍 Around the world
    South Korea's School Violence Prevention Act mandates regular training for teachers and trained counsellors at school level. Australian states fund counsellor positions and require staff PD on bullying.
    🇮🇳 In India today
    No mandatory teacher training on bullying. Counsellors exist mostly in elite urban private schools. Most Indian children have no trained adult to disclose to.
  6. 6

    An independent escalation route — beyond the school itself.

    Set up an independent ombudsman / school-violence committee at the district and state level, that families can appeal to when a school fails to act. Findings should be public (anonymised) and binding.

    🌍 Around the world
    South Korea's School Violence Committees sit outside the principal's office and can compel action. Norway's County Governor and Sweden's Schools Inspectorate hear complaints when schools fail.
    🇮🇳 In India today
    If an Indian school refuses to act, parents have no clear, free, fast escalation path. They negotiate goodwill or hire a lawyer.
  7. 7

    Annual public data — so we know if the law is working.

    Mandate every school to report anonymised bullying data annually to a national dashboard: number of incidents, types, response times, outcomes. Without measurement, there is no accountability.

    🌍 Around the world
    United States: most state laws require schools to report bullying data; some states publish school-level statistics. Australia and the UK collect and publish national data.
    🇮🇳 In India today
    India has no mandated national bullying-incidence reporting. We rely on one-off academic surveys (e.g., UNESCO 2019). The state cannot fix what it does not measure.

“We are not asking for something experimental. We are asking for what children in Norway, Sweden, South Korea, the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia and Japan already have. India is a notable absence on that list. Make us a country that protects children by law, not by luck.”