From politicians to teenage girls to young creators, women are being silenced online. The new battleground isn’t the street—it’s the screen.
When BJP leader Rekha Gupta was recently attacked, it was a chilling reminder that women in public life don’t just fight ideological battles—they fight for their safety. What makes the picture even grimmer is that, while such assaults are visible and shocking in the offline world, the day-to-day battering of women’s dignity now happens online—relentless, toxic, and largely unchecked.
Take the case of Kangana Ranaut or Smriti Irani. Since stepping into politics, both have endured torrents of vitriol. Male politicians are critiqued for policy or performance. Female politicians are mocked for their gender, appearance, and audacity to occupy a male-dominated space. The message is consistent: “You don’t belong here.”
Patriarchy Goes Digital
Online abuse is not an aberration—it is a continuation of offline patriarchy. The same double standards that judge women’s clothes, choices, or sexuality in society now play out a thousandfold on social media. The anonymity of the internet emboldens trolls. Weak laws and sluggish platforms ensure little accountability. And instead of rallying behind survivors, many families respond by restricting access—telling daughters to quit social media rather than telling sons to stop harassing. The result? The survivor is punished twice: first by abuse, then by silence.
Girls know something is wrong but remain silent, fearing blame or loss of phone access. Boys want to intervene but lack safe spaces. Parents, digitally illiterate yet worried, impose restrictions instead of trust. The outcome? Women log off. Men dominate. The digital gender divide deepens.
A 2023 study by global non profit Girl Effect found that one in two young women in India’s metro cities faced online harassment, and half of them contemplated quitting social media altogether. “The online space makes men feel invincible—no accountability,” says Aishwarya Sahay of Girl Effect. “Parents often become barriers instead of enablers.”
The Anatomy of Abuse
The methods are depressingly familiar: slut-shaming, character assassination, doctored photos, impersonation, abusive hashtags. Offline, a heckler can be silenced or a miscreant arrested. Online, the abuser hides behind anonymity, shielded by numbers and algorithms that reward outrage.
“Online violence is part of the broader issue where offline harassment against women has been normalised,” says Kanta Singh, Acting Country Representative, UN Women. “And we need to include men and boys in interventions. Otherwise, it’s just women talking to themselves and getting nowhere.”
Radio jockey Shruti of Radio Mirchi has faced it all—cyberstalking, impersonation, sustained trolling. “Survivors are rarely guided towards clear help,” she says. “Women are blamed, reporting mechanisms are weak, and privacy has become a luxury. We need to reclaim it together.”
Siddharth Pillai of RATI Foundation points out how the nature of attacks has evolved: “Earlier, most cases were about fake profiles. Now it’s coordinated, algorithmically savvy trolling. Young female creators are prime targets—trolled by men driven by both inferiority and entitlement.”
A Pandemic Called TFGBV
Technology-Facilitated GenderBased Violence (TFGBV) is now one of the most widespread threats to women online. A 2025 study, #BreakTheSilo, found that 54.8% of Indian women experienced TFGBV. Sixty-one percent reported cyberstalking or impersonation; 65% reported mental health harm. Yet only 30% approached the police. Most turned to family or platforms, signalling a deep distrust of formal systems.
In response, Girl Effect India has launched CTRL+SHIFT+RESPECT, a youth-powered initiative to fight online abuse. “Just as technology connects and empowers, it is also misused to harm and troll,” says Kavita Ayyagari, Country Director, Girl Effect India- “The first step for anyone experiencing Tech Hinsa or technology-facilitated gender-based violence is to know where to seek help—whether that’s with reporting abuse, accessing legal aid, or finding psychosocial support. With our Ctrl+Shift+Help resource, we ensure survivors can find safe and trustworthy support when they need it most.”
What Needs to Change
Tackling online violence against women requires urgent, multipronged action. The law must recognise technology-facilitated gender-based violence (TFGBV) as a serious, punishable crime, with stronger enforcement and faster redressal. Digital platforms need to act swiftly against trolls, fake accounts, and coordinated attacks, instead of hiding behind opaque policies. At the household level, families must build digital literacy and encourage open conversations, rather than imposing fear or restrictions that silence girls further. And finally, men and boys must step up as allies, not bystanders—challenging peers, intervening when they witness abuse, and helping create safer digital spaces. Only when these pillars work together can the online world become a place where women’s voices are protected, not erased.
The Cost of Silence
Women in public life face the wrath more visibly, but they are not alone. From teenage girls to YouTubers to radio jockeys, countless women face the daily grind of online abuse. When they log off in despair, society loses half its voices.
The new battleground is not the street, but the screen. And unless we defend women’s right to speak, be visible, and be safe online, the promise of a truly democratic digital world will remain an illusion.
