The Rage We Have Raised

On July 10, 2025, in a quiet school in Hisar, Haryana, This wasn't just a case of teenage defiance.

- DEEPAM CHATTERJEE

It was a flashpoint in a society simmering with suppressed rage. How did a routine school instruction spiral into a fatal act of violence? More disturbingly, why does this feel less shocking than it should?

Something is shifting around us. On the same day in Kanpur, a man bludgeoned another with a metal rod during a road rage incident. In Jaipur, on July 5, a shopkeeper was attacked by a mob over a billing issue. In Hyderabad, a student assaulted his professor. And each time, we scroll past the headline, shake our heads briefly, and move on. Until the next eruption.

But perhaps, we should pause. This particular killing happened on Guru Purnima—a day when India traditionally honors teachers. And yet, on this day, a teacher was murdered by his students. This was not a story about discipline gone wrong or a case of sudden fury. It was about years of emotional erosion, entitlement, and unchecked rage—both at home and in society. It was about what we have normalized in our homes: anger, rebellion, impunity.

Much of this begins with how children are raised. In many Indian homes today, discipline is diluted by overindulgence. A tantrum is tolerated, defiance excused. Parents, grandparents, uncles and aunts—all with different approaches—create confusion. One hand scolds, another hand offers a sweet. Slowly, the child learns there are no real consequences. That lesson stays. And when a child grows up believing they are above reprimand, that ego becomes brittle and explosive.