Cyberbullying in the LGBTQ and Delineating Indian Government's Role for LGBTQ in Cyberspace

Cyberbullying is one of the major concerns in LGBTQ community. The present research demonstrates the adverse effect of cyberbullying in mental, physical, and emotional health of LGBTQ community. The objective of the research is to measure the effects of Cyberbullying and delineating the government's role for LGBTQ in cyberspace. The qualitative study was carried out on a sample of 10 participants who are either bisexual, gay or transgender. Interviews were done in a telephonic manner and participants were asked a set of validated questions regarding cyberbullying and the Indian government?s safeguards and measures for the LGBTQ in the online space. Thematic analysis was conducted to analyse the data and themes were analysed separately for bisexuals, gays and transgenders for understanding any similarities and differences between them. The finding depicts the negative effects of cyberbullying which includes suicidal ideation and lower self - esteem, constant threats and abuses, mistreatment by the authorities, homophobia and bigotry. Recommendation and interventions were discussed with the participants. This paper contributes further on a rather scarce topic of LGBTQ and cyberbullying in India and attempts to bring a new understanding of LGBTQ in India.