A recent incident where an eight-year-old boy attacked a six-year-old girl at school has caused widespread concern across India. This event highlighted the issue of violence's impact on children and the growing difficulties in combating aggressive behavior in early childhood.
The boy, a third-grade student at a government school, brutally attacked the girl from the same school in Panchkula, Haryana, in northern India, last month. The attack, captured on video surveillance, involved the child repeatedly hitting her head against a desk, throwing a pot of flowers at her, and then kicking her while she lay on the floor.
The boy, whose identity is protected by law, lured the girl into an empty classroom by falsely telling her that her father had come to visit, after which he began the assault. He later accompanied the girl's teachers and parents to the classroom where she was found unconscious after classes and taken to the hospital. A video of her leaving the hospital amidst cheers went viral on social media last week.
The boy was initially sent to a shelter for observation but was subsequently released. He is currently undergoing psychological evaluation to determine the reasons behind his outburst of violence.
This incident has sparked panic among parents of young children, who express anxiety about their children's safety even in the school environment. Sanchi Yadav, mother of a ten-year-old girl and a six-year-old boy, told Khaleej Times: 'It was a shocking incident; the details are horrifying. I couldn't stop thinking about my children's safety. My son is the same age as that girl.'
Yadav added that such cruelty and aggression are unimaginable, yet parents know that children watch aggressive videos and become impatient and intolerant.
Her concerns are supported by facts: there is a sharp rise in cases of violence involving children aged 12 and under in India. In June this year, police in the western city of Jaipur arrested three children aged 10 to 12 on suspicion of murdering a twelve-year-old boy over remarks made by one of the accused sisters. The child's skull was found in the sewage system.
In another case, three students allegedly attacked a twelve-year-old class monitor with a blade after he maintained discipline in a queue at a private school in Ahmedabad, Gujarat. In the same city in 2025, a fifteen-year-old student was reportedly slashed by another student near the school with a folding stationery knife; the victim died in the hospital, and the teenager was arrested.
Experts are increasingly concerned about the influence of excessive screen time, violent video games, and unregulated access to social media on aggressive behavior and children's ability to manage anger. These games often feature shooting, fighting, and killing opponents, rewarding players for achieving goals or defeating others.
Three Indian sisters committed suicide by jumping from the ninth floor of a building near Delhi in February, allegedly influenced by an unknown Korean task-based gaming application. Such a game caused widespread alarm in the country in 2017 as it was linked to suicides and self-harm among children and adolescents.
The lawyer representing the boy told the media that he was addicted to violent mobile games where players attack virtual characters to earn points. Psychologists argue that platforms like Instagram, YouTube, and other short-video apps promote the spread of violence through videos showing physical fights, assaults, humiliation, and dangerous stunts. Children become accustomed to this and stop fearing the consequences.
Dr. Pulkit Sharma, a clinical psychologist, noted: 'Almost every child has a phone or uses their parents' phones. The problem is not the AI or social media itself, but that the algorithms are so automated that if a child watches a video about anger or aggression, the platform starts recommending more such content.' He continued: 'This can color the mind of a susceptible child, and they can be deeply affected by this exposure. We cannot control the content, aggression, or violence. Everything they observe becomes generalized behavior.'
Experts also point to unregulated emotions in children. One factor is the family environment. Due to nuclear families, busy parents, and lack of time, children cannot receive attention or express their feelings. Dr. Sharma added that dysfunctional families, neglect, emotional instability, lack of discipline, excessive pampering, and affection further contribute to feelings of insecurity and frustration in children.
He emphasized: 'Life has become extremely fast, and people have become increasingly busy. Emotional availability is largely absent.' According to him, due to the almost complete breakdown of human support systems, children are left alone with strong negative emotions, which manifest as raw aggression, violence, or even self-harm. They may harm themselves, cut their skin, or harm others.
The situation is exacerbated by the shortage of qualified counselors and trained mental health professionals in schools. Although there is no nationwide requirement in India for assigning a qualified counselor in every school, the Centre has a system requiring the appointment of a dedicated counselor in secondary and senior schools affiliated with CBSE.
Dr. Shweta Sharma, a psychologist from the Paneli Juvenile Court in Gurgaon, noted: 'This child from Panchkula should have shown behavioral triggers that could have been identified as signs of aggression, but this identification was missing because there were no counselors in the government school.' She also pointed out that even private schools do not hire counselors or distribute them among 30–40 students; the ratio is inadequate.
Recent cases involving young children have once again raised questions about the existing age of criminal responsibility in India. According to current Indian legal frameworks, any person under 18 is considered a child, and those under seven cannot be held criminally responsible. Children between the ages of seven and twelve are exempt from criminal liability if they lack the maturity to understand the nature and consequences of their actions.
Meanwhile, the Juvenile Justice (Care and Protection of Children) Act of 2015 allows children aged 16 to 18 accused of serious crimes to undergo a preliminary assessment to determine their mental and physical capacity to commit the crime and understand its circumstances before a decision is made regarding adult court proceedings.
There have been instances where teenagers avoided criminal punishment in cases of negligent driving resulting in pedestrian deaths. Some argue that exceptional cases involving children should be treated differently. Dr. Shweta stated: 'Every case is individual, and the court must have the ability to decide on intervention; there must be some adaptation depending on the case.'
However, legal experts warn that placing young offenders in adult prisons can be counterproductive, exposing them to hardened criminals and sharply increasing the risk of recidivism. Ravi Birbal, a Supreme Court advocate, said: 'Neuroscientific research shows that impulse control is not fully developed until early adulthood. The law cannot change brain development. What is definitely necessary is strict control over individuals who abuse, manipulate, or lure minors into crime.'
Birbal stressed the need to increase awareness, education, sensitivity, and accountability among teachers and parents to identify behavioral problems and prevent children from involvement in crime. She added: 'Special homes and safe havens for minors are not easy conditions, and teenagers aged 16 to 18 can always be imprisoned later for serious crimes if the Juvenile Court deems it necessary. The entire judicial process is turbulent.' She concluded: 'These children lose formative years of their lives. In fact, people treat these punishments as a taboo, avoiding and ignoring them for too long.'
She emphasized that 'the ultimate solution is raising awareness.' Birbal specifically noted that steps forward include 'improving the education system, having competent teachers, ensuring accountability, installing CCTV cameras in schools and public places, providing good nutrition to students, and conducting spiritual education.'
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