Among the 28 states and eight Union Territories in the country, Rajasthan has emerged the front-runner in the number of rape cases, including POCSO involving victims below the age of 18 years, took place in 2021. The state has retained the dubious distinction for the third consecutive year.

The National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) in its 2021 annual report, released yesterday, statistically charted the desert state with as many as 6,337 rape cases, 1,027 cases more than the preceding year, 2020, and 340 more than in 2019.

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Barring the rape cases, Rajasthan stands sixth in the country in the crime cases with a total of over 2.1 lakh crimes in 2021 under various sections of IPC, as against the five states leading in crimes including Maharashtra, Uttar Pradesh, Tamil Nadu, Madhya Pradesh, and Gujarat.

Out of a total of 33.36 lakh cases nationwide, Maharashtra leads with 3.67 lakh crime cases followed by Uttar Pradesh 3.57 lakh, Tamil Nadu 3.22 lakh, Madhya Pradesh 3.04, Gujarat 2.73 lakh in the last calendar year. Rajasthan recorded 2.14 lakh cases which were 21,273 cases more than the year of 2020.

The total rape cases took place in the country under section 376 of IPC stand at 30,016 led by Rajasthan with 6,337, Madhya Pradesh 2,947, Uttar Pradesh 2,845 and Maharashtra 2,496 cases.

While Rajasthan is blamed for rise in rape cases, NCRB data shows that overall crimes against women under IPC and SLL (Special & Local Laws) have jumped in Uttar Pradesh with 56,085 cases in 2021 as against 49,385 in 2020. Rajasthan in the second position has recorded 40,735 cases and Maharshtra stands at the third spot with 3152 cases. Though India’s total figure for crime against women is 4,09,273 in 2021 as against 357363 in 2020.

In the category of murder with rape or gang rape, out of 278 cases reported in the country, Uttar Pradesh topped with 48 while Assam stood second with 46 cases. Madhya Pradesh recorded 35 such cases and Maharashtra 23, and Rajasthan 14.

Reacting to the NCRB report, the Director-General of Police, Rajasthan M L Lather told SNS, “As per the state government’s policy, our police is alert and register every crime regardless of crime against women (rape too) when found or reported by the complainant who so ever he or she is. Rajasthan is a peaceful state, and pinpointing rape in media is not justified because our FIR rate is very high compared to the other states. Say for Maharashtra, Bihar, and Uttar Pradesh, there is a limit/rider on registering the FIR. These states cannot cross their limit on a per-day basis. Rajasthan has no limit or rider on filing FIRs. Ours is free for every victim/complainant to lodge from anywhere, including online. It is heard and disposed of properly”.

“Similarly, we are filing charge sheets in rape cases in 74 days which was earlier to took us 240 days. In many other cases, Rajasthan police got the rapist convicted in 24 hours to 48 hours, and also within 7 days after the rape was committed”, the DGP claimed.

In the POCSO cases, of a total of 6,337 cases in the stipulated year in Rajasthan, 18 girls are below the age of 6 years, 64 girls below the age of 12 years, 442 girls below the age of 18 years, and 929 above the 18 years fell prey to the crime. About 4,889 women above the age of 30 were allegedly victims of the rape and the cases were being dealt with in the referred courts after the charge sheets.

Police’s excuse that the rape is committed by known people mostly seems to be true as the NCRB report for Rajasthan statistically examined that the share of the percentage of known rape cases (offender known to the victim) was 95.8 percent. In the stipulated rape cases in the state, 582 were family members who committed the crime, 1701 were friends/online/live-in partners, 3791 were neighbours /employer/family friends, and only 263 were unknown fellows.

Under the metropolitan cities’ crime graph, Delhi is most vulnerable to women crime as it recorded 13,982 cases against 9,782 in the previous year 2020, Mumbai stood second with 5,543 women crime cases against 4,583 cases in 2020. The state capital of Jaipur in Rajasthan recorded 2827 women crime cases which were 458 more than the previous year of 2020.

In the graft cases registered under the Prevention of Corruption Act, Maharashtra lodged a maximum of 773 cases, followed by Rajasthan securing the second position with 501 cases, and Tamil Nadu the third with 423 cases.

Senior citizens are also in the grip of crime in the entire nation as India recorded a total of 26,110 cases that involved murder, culpable homicide, and attempts to commit murder under various sections of IPC. In this bracket, Rajasthan recorded just 363 cases as against 6,190 in Maharashtra which was the highest. Madhya Pradesh was second with 5,273 cases.