Consent, power and campus safety
A campus framework that treats consent as freely chosen and ongoing, recognises power differences, and protects access to education after harassment or violence.
In this guide
Teach consent accurately
Consent is a free, specific and continuing choice
Agreement to one act, at one time, with one person is not agreement to anything else. A person can pause or withdraw; past intimacy, dating, marriage, clothing, alcohol use, flirting or entering a room does not create permanent permission.
Silence, freezing and pressure are not a yes
Fear, threats, blackmail, intoxication, sleep, incapacity, relentless requests, academic pressure or an authority relationship can remove real choice. Teach students to seek active willingness and stop when the other person is uncertain or unresponsive.
Digital consent is consent too
Permission to receive an image does not mean permission to save, forward, post or weaponise it. Sexual messages, deepfakes, location tracking, account access and threats to publish intimate material belong in campus prevention and response systems.
Recognise power and retaliation
Map who controls opportunities
Faculty, supervisors, senior students, coaches, hostel staff, doctors and placement contacts may influence grades, recommendations, housing, attendance, funding or career access. A nominal yes does not erase coercion or institutional responsibility.
Treat retaliation as a safety issue
Watch for grade threats, exclusion, rumours, doxxing, countersuits, forced mediation, hostel restrictions or pressure from student groups. Interim measures should restrain the reported risk, not remove the complainant from education.
Include peer and off-campus conduct
Campus impact can continue when conduct occurs on a trip, in rented housing, at a festival, during an internship, in an online group or through transport. Provide a route for support even when jurisdiction or legal classification needs clarification.
Build a usable campus response
Offer confidential information before a formal choice
Students should be able to learn available institutional, medical, legal, counselling and safety options without being forced immediately into one pathway. Explain any limit to confidentiality before details are shared.
Provide practical interim measures
Options can include no-contact directions, timetable or supervisor changes chosen with the student, safe accommodation, transport, deadline flexibility and protection from retaliation. Do not make counselling a substitute for stopping harmful conduct.
Use fair, trained and time-bound processes
Publish who receives complaints, how conflicts of interest are handled, what each stage involves, realistic timeframes, support-person options and review routes. Avoid moral judgments, repeated retelling and informal settlements imposed by authority figures.
Keep prevention visible throughout the year
Train staff and students on consent, bystander action, digital abuse and reporting routes; audit hostels, transport, festivals and fieldwork; and report anonymised trends and corrective action without exposing survivors.
Words you can use
Checking consent
A student wants a clear, non-pressuring way to ask
“Do you want this? It is completely okay to say no or stop. If you are not sure, we will pause.”
Seeking campus options
A student wants information without committing to a formal complaint
“Before I share identifying details, please explain my support and safety options, whether any step is mandatory, who would receive the information, and what I can choose next.”
Related issue guides
Sources and publication record
Reviewed and approved by the project team · Sources checked .
- Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023India Code, Legislative Department
- Bharatiya Nagarik Suraksha Sanhita, 2023India Code, Legislative Department
- Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act, 2012India Code, Legislative Department
- Sexual Harassment of Women at Workplace Act, 2013India Code, Legislative Department
- Free legal services and National Legal Aid Helpline 15100National Legal Services Authority
- Emergency Response Support System 112Ministry of Home Affairs