Despite police claiming that top priority is given to the safety of women, 2019 has seen ‘no significant change’ in atrocities against women, compared to last year.
As many as 2,305 cases pertaining to crime against women were filed till Wednesday this year, compared to 2,286 last year. The number of cases registered under ‘outraging the modesty of women’ saw a 21% rise with the police registering 454 cases this year compared to 373 in 2018.
Numbers speak
Similarly, dowry death cases have seen an upward trend in the State capital this year, with an 11% rise, which is 19 cases reported in 2019, as against 17 last year, revealed the data shared by the Hyderabad police.
Incidentally, crime against women increased when the overall crime rate in Hyderabad showed a downward trend.
Presenting the details at the annual press conference at the historic British Residence (University College for Women) in Koti on Thursday, City Police Commissioner Anjani Kumar said that on the whole, the crime rate in the city has come down by 3%.
Automobile thefts
In all, 15,598 First Information Reports (FIRs) were issued till Wednesday, as against 16,084 in 2018. This, when cases of automobile thefts increased substantially. A total of 779 automobile thefts were reported this year, compared to 661 in 2018.
Heinous crimes such as rape, murder, attempt to murder, kidnapping and robbery, also showed a drop in the current year. “There is a significant fall in overall crime, including rapes, chain-snatchings and property offences in Hyderabad,” Mr. Kumar said.
Drop in rape cases
He added that the city saw a drop in rape cases by 16%, while chain-snatching and kidnapping went down by 30% and 14% respectively.
“In 2018, 178 rape cases were reported in the city and the number has come down to 150 this year,” the city police chief said, adding that even harassment cases have seen a 2% decline.
According to Additional Commissioner of Police (Crimes and SIT) Shikha Goel, the availability of CCTVs facilitated the detection and reduction of crime in Hyderabad.
“Every time a criminal is committing an offence, the chances of him getting caught are more with surveillance cameras in place. These (CCTVs) are acting as a deterrent for the criminal and several crimes are being detected in just 24 to 48 hours. This has helped in curbing crime,” she said.
She also said that this year, the conviction rate has gone up by 42% compared to 34% in the previous year. Ms. Goel added that 25 people were convicted for life imprisonment in 17 cases and one person was awarded 20 years’ imprisonment in another case. “When a criminal knows that his chances of getting convicted in the legal system are high, it acts as a deterrent. The police have secured convictions in 2,092 cases,” she said.
