Time to alert authorities and not be a mute spectator

Kshitij Wandekar was found hanging from the ceiling in his room on November 12

Bullying and an assault by a classmate led a Navi Mumbai teenager, aged 16, to take his life. A report cited that the boy was assaulted after he allegedly referred to another boy as a drug addict and refused to tender an apology when asked to do so.

While that extreme step is disturbing, what should be a matter of concern is that this paper's report stated that the boy was humiliated and beaten up just outside the college campus, in front of at least 100 people, but not one of them came forward to help.

This watch on culture has been seen in other reports, and overseas too, where shocking crimes have been witnessed by groups of persons. If they did not think it was feasible to intervene, they could have called the authorities. Instead, many of them film the incidents on their phone and post them on social media, for ‘likes' instead of intervening and saving somebody in a dire situation.

With a mobile in hand, you can call for help if you would not physically intervene. Having said that, huge groups can come together and stop any kind of harassment physically too, as there is strength in numbers.

Youngsters must be alerted to helplines and the fact that there are professionally trained counsellors who can help in cases of extreme distress. Every adult has to repeatedly stress that he or she is not alone, and that there is help; the first step is to talk and share, when one is on the brink.

Today, educational institutes put great stress on mental health, much more than before, and through the pandemic we had people focus on this aspect. So much so that the stigma is fading away. A combination of all these factors can prevent tragedies of this magnitude.