Maharashtra govt to monitor cops, prosecutors to up conviction rate

After being pulled up for its low conviction rate of 13%, the Maharashtra government is working on overhauling the system, taking steps such as monitoring performance of public prosecutors and increasing payments made to witnesses.

After being pulled up for its low conviction rate of 13%, the Maharashtra government is working on overhauling the system, taking steps such as monitoring performance of public prosecutors and increasing payments made to witnesses.

The state has acted on a report by former additional chief secretary Amitabh Rajan.

The decision was made in government resolution issued on May 12.

Some of the measures include monitoring performance of public prosecutors and reviewing and segregating pending cases.

Prosecutors will be appointed under the directorate of prosecution, which will be free from government control.

The government will also link their performance to their success rate in conviction cases. If this is less than 25% over two years, their tenure will not be extended.

For police officials involved in crime detection, of the ranks of SP and DCP, their annual confidential records (ACR) will make a mention of their detection rates and the final prosecution rate of cases from January 2015.

More than 18 lakh cases are pending in the state’s 1,291 courts.

New labs and upgrading the existing ones is also on the cards. A committee has been constituted under the home secretary that will decide the type of technology, the strength of staff, and other procedural guidelines to be followed by forensics labs.