Statistics on crimes against women that were recently tabled in the Haryana state assembly session showed that the number of rape cases registered by the police between September 2014 to September 2015 was 961. The number of rape cases registered has only seen an upward trend since then as the number increased to 1,026 in 2015-2016, in 2016-17 it was 1,193 and 1,413 in 2017-2018.
Increase in the number of crimes against women
Hindustan Times reported that from September 2014 to August 2015 to the present year, there has been a 47% increase in the number of rape cases while cases related to the kidnapping of women increased by more than 100%. There has also been a 26% increase in molestation cases.
Unfortunately, between 2014-2015 and 2017-2018, there has been a 27% increase in crime against women altogether. Not even has this rate decreased in districts where women police stations were opened, Chief Minister Manohar Lal Khattar said at the session. He also said that first information reports (FIRs) registered by the police also showed a rising trend of crimes against women From April 2018 to June 2018. Additionally, compared to 8,126 cases of crime against women registered between September 2014 till August 2015, 10,000 cases have been registered between September 2017 till present, revealed the CM in the statement.
Similarly, the number of cases pertaining to the kidnapping of women and girls increased from 1,664 in 2014- 2015 to 2,330 in 2015-16, 3,055 in 2016-17 and were 3,494 in 2017-18 respectively. But fortunately, cases of deaths due to dowry harassment have been decreasing.
What does the police claim?
On the other hand, the Director General of police BS Sandhu claims that because of free registration of FIRs, the data indicates this surge in the rate of crime against women. “About 20% of the rape cases every year are being cancelled as they were found to be false during the investigation. This year, the police detected 37 honey trap cases, which will fall flat,’’ he told the daily.
Statistics show that the state police cancelled as many as 327 rape FIRs in 2017, and 138 till in this year till June 2018. There have been claims of police inaction too, Hindustan Times reports.
Congress slams the Haryana Government
On September 16, senior Congress leader Randeep Singh Surjewala criticized the ruling government of Haryana and its Chief Minister and demanded his resignation as the CM. According to the Times Of India, Surjewala has said that the government has entirely failed to control crimes against women in the state and the CM’s attitude in the Rewari gangrape case reflected his anti-women mindset.
Surjewala said, ”The truth is that the state government, which vows to save daughters has made the state to witness most number of rapes and gang rapes”
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