3 min readAug 4, 2026 06:09 AM IST First published on: Aug 4, 2026 at 06:05 AM ISTThe Prime Minister’s message was clear. He urged forgiveness for those who used abusive language against him during the recent student protests triggered by the NEET exam paper leak. Punishing them, dragging them to court and hounding them, is not the way forward, PM Narendra Modi said in an Instagram video on Friday. It was a welcome intervention, one that recognised that such excesses are best addressed through persuasion rather than prosecution. But if his words are to carry weight, they must be honoured by law enforcement agencies, by his party, and by the troll armies that are affiliated to it or support it.Unfortunately, that seems easier said than done. Ever since the protest was called off on July 25, a relentless backlash is being faced by many who took to the streets. Cases were filed against protestors, notwithstanding the government’s assurance that legal action would not be taken, even as some state governments have, since then, withdrawn cases. Online, self-appointed enforcers of “morality” have shared photographs and videos of those who participated, demanding “action” against them. Trolls have doxxed several of the protestors, making their names, phone numbers, addresses and other personal details public, thus exposing them to sustained harassment. Young women, in particular, have drawn much of this ire.AdvertisementThe resignation of Education Minister Dharmendra Pradhan — one of the key demands of the satirical online platform, Cockroach Janta Party, which led the protests — showed that the government was listening to the youth. The significance of that moment lay in the state recognising that it had to resist its instinct to turn a deaf ear to grievances or to criminalise dissent. The PM’s call to forgive the protestors is an important part of that acknowledgement. But forgiveness cannot remain a sentiment expressed on Instagram while intimidation continues on the ground. Certainly, some of the language used during the demonstrations was crude, falling on old sexist tropes. It was unbecoming of a movement that was otherwise defined by a fresh and creative energy. But while these protests must become an opportunity for the young — and, indeed, the old — to learn from their mistakes, they cannot be used as a pretext for the state and online mobs to target them vindictively. The Prime Minister has spoken. The police and party faithful should listen to him.