Crime Against Women Rises by 4% in 2022
According to recent data, crime against women increased by 4% in 2022 compared to the previous year, with a total of 4,45,256 cases registered. Shockingly, Delhi continues to hold the title of the Most Unsafe Metropolitan City for women in India. Alarming statistics reveal an average of three rape cases reported daily in 2022.
The report indicates a rise in the rate of crime against women from 64.5% in 2021 to 66% in 2022. The majority of these cases, 32.4%, involve cruelty by husbands or their relatives, followed by 19.2% due to kidnapping and abduction, and 18.7% resulting from assault on women with the intent to outrage. Surprisingly, only 7.1% of cases are attributed to rape, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report released on Sunday, December 3.
Metropolitan Cities Face a Surge
In 2022, a total of 48,755 cases of crime against women were registered in 19 metropolitan cities, marking a 12.3% increase from 2021. Among individual states, Uttar Pradesh leads the list with 65,743 cases, followed by Maharashtra with 45,331 cases and Rajasthan with 45,058 cases.
State-wise Breakdown
NCRB’s data reveals a total of 31,516 rape cases recorded in 2022 in India. Rajasthan reported 5,399 rape cases, Uttar Pradesh reported 3,690 cases, and Madhya Pradesh reported 3,029 cases. In the category of murder with rape and gangrape, Uttar Pradesh topped again with 62 registered cases, followed by Madhya Pradesh with 41 cases.
Meanwhile, Delhi reported 1,204 cases in the last year. Delhi has consistently held the unfortunate record for the highest number of crimes against women, with 14,158 cases reported for the third consecutive year. This translates to approximately 186.9 crimes reported for every 1,00,000 women. Mumbai reported 6,176 cases, and Bengaluru reported 3,924 cases.
Law Enforcement’s Perspective
Suman Nalwa, Deputy Commissioner of Police (Public Relations), explained that Delhi’s high numbers are a result of the police force’s commitment to registering all complaints. She emphasized that complainants are not turned away at any police station, and senior officers actively monitor the status of complaints. Nalwa also highlighted the practice of filing Zero FIRs and transferring cases to respective states when complainants from other states file FIRs in the capital.
Braja Kishore Singh, former Joint Commissioner of Delhi Police, cautioned against comparing crime across cities or states based solely on case numbers or crime rates. He stressed the importance of using data to analyze crime trends and take preventive measures to further reduce incidents.
Crime Against Children
The NCRB report also sheds light on crime against children, with Maharashtra topping the list with 1,62,449 cases registered during 2022. This represents an 8.7% increase over the previous year when 1,49,404 cases were reported.
Source: The Quint, Hindustan Times
Article by Hima Mohan, Reporting for TrueToLife.