NCRB data reinforces Delhi’s rape capital tag, city tops in crimes against women | Latest News Delhi - Hindustan Times
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NCRB data reinforces Delhi’s rape capital tag, city tops in crimes against women

Hindustan Tmes | By
Dec 01, 2017 01:03 PM IST

Latest National Crime Records Bureau data shows Delhi contributed to one in every three crimes against women in 2016. Delhi Police says the numbers are high because more victims are coming out to report crime

Four years after the horrific December 2012 gang rape of a physiotherapy student, which led to a national outrage and several legal measures, Delhi remains one of the most unsafe city for women — a fact reinforced by the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) statistics for the year 2016.

This year Delhi also bagged another notorious feather in its hat as it contributed the maximum percentage of crime to the statistics collated from the 19 metropolitan cities .(HT FILE)
This year Delhi also bagged another notorious feather in its hat as it contributed the maximum percentage of crime to the statistics collated from the 19 metropolitan cities .(HT FILE)

The national Capital, which has consistently reported an increase in the number of sexual crimes against women, has also topped the charts for crimes such as dowry deaths, acid attacks, cruelty by husbands, kidnapping and abduction and stalking, among 19 metropolitan cities of the country from where data was analysed.

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According to NCRB data released on Thursday, Delhi contributed one in every three cases of all the crimes against women that happened in metropolitan cities and 4% of all the such cases in the country, with 13,803 cases. This is higher than the 13,260 cases reported in 2014.

Mumbai was a distant second with 5,128 cases registered in 2016. In neighbouring Ghaziabad, 1,031 such cases were reported in 2016.

Delhi reported 1,996 rape cases in 2016, up from 1,893 in 2015.

This year Delhi also bagged another notorious feather in its hat as it contributed the maximum percentage of crime to the statistics collated from the 19 metropolitan cities that include Mumbai, Pune, Chennai, Bangalore, Hyderabad, Ahmedabad, Jaipur, Lucknow

The Capital also clinched the top spot for the most number of rape cases, attempt to rape cases, acid attacks, dowry deaths, kidnapping and abduction, sexual harassment, forceful attempt to disrobe, voyeurism and stalking, confirming claims that despite several measures taken by the authorities, Delhi has remained unsafe for women.

“This is mainly about the way the city is structured. We keep talking about lighting and last-mile connectivity, but nothing has materialised. Crime is being reported because it is happening,” said Ranjana Kumari, one of the many experts in the field who had presented arguments before the Justice Verma Commission that was set up after the December 2012 gang rape case.

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Delhi Police, however, maintained that a high number of cases in the city is because of their provisions like e-FIR, and their attempts to proactively and fairly register all complaints.

“So, we are promoting and encouraging people to register FIRs. We register FIRs even based on complaints we have received over mail,” said Dependra Pathak, Delhi Traffic Police chief and the chief spokesperson for Delhi Police.

Referring to the rise in cases of rape registered in the city, Pathak said the number of such cases has dipped this year.

“Until November 15 in 2016, we had registered 1,910 rape cases, and 3775 molestation cases. These have dropped to 1,894 and 3,044 in 2017,” he said.

Noted lawyer Karuna Nundy spoke of how police’s ability in terms of forensics, strength of force, and bringing cases to conviction fast needs to be strengthened. “Bringing cases to conviction swiftly is what deters future crime,” she said.

Pathak said the police have solved more molestation cases in 2017 compared to last year. “In 2016, we had worked out 65.64% of the cases, while in 2017, we have worked out 76.34% of the molestation cases,” he said.

Kalpana Viswanath, the co-founder of Safetipin, said that people end up focusing on Delhi, and forget to see that the problem is “spreading”.

“The more data we get, the myths that certain places are safe are being busted. Delhi’s crimes against women rates are high, but we also need to focus on how it is increasing in other places too,” she said.

“We need to do a crime victimisation survey, where you ask the public about their experiences even unreported ones, as such data is only about reported cases. Crimes against women are still under reported in our country,” she said.

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  • ABOUT THE AUTHOR
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    Mariyam is a correspondent with the Hindustan Times’ Delhi team. She covers stories related to weather, pollution, and education.

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