There continues to be a sharp increase in the number of reported crimes against children, new crime data shows, but the numbers might hide a more complex picture. On the other hand, there has been little increase in the rate of crime juveniles are accused of, despite much public outcry about ‘rising juvenile crime.’
The number of reported crimes against children, which had more than doubled between 2012 and 2013, increased by 50 per cent between the last two years, new data from the National Crime Records Bureau show. Nearly 90,000 crimes against children were registered in 2014 of which over 37,000 involved kidnap and abduction and nearly 14,000 involved rape.
However a significant number of these cases could involve consenting girls or women whose parents register cases of kidnap and rape against their male partners, police sources said. In 2013, India raised the age of consent for sex to 18 years. The Hindu ’s investigation of 600 rape cases in Delhi’s district courts had revealed that such FIRs routinely listed adult women as juveniles in order to secure arrest for the male partner. The rate of conviction in rape cases involving children in 2014 was just 31 per cent.
While there was a slight increase in the number of juveniles in conflict with the law, the proportion of such alleged crimes proportionate to all crime, and relative to India’s juvenile population has not changed.
The majority of juveniles in conflict in the law are accused of theft, while over 2,000 were booked for underage drinking. The majority of juveniles are poor and poorly educated, the data show.
