The Uttar Pradesh government on Wednesday claimed the number of serious crimes in the state has seen a decline and the people feel more secure now.
It also claimed that the law and order situation in Uttar Pradesh is better compared to other states in the country.
The Uttar Pradesh government’s statements come amid attacks from the opposition over the growing crime rate in the state.
Citing the recently released National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data for 2017, Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi had on Tuesday said that it was “shameful” that Uttar Pradesh topped in cases of crimes against women.
Earlier on Wednesday, Bahujan Samaj Party (BSP) chief Mayawati said Uttar Pradesh was in the “worst condition“.
Speaking at a hurriedly convened press conference here, Uttar Pradesh Cabinet minister and state government spokesperson Mahendra Singh said, “Cases in the state are being registered in public interest. There has been a drop in serious crimes, and as compared to other states in the country, the law and order situation in the state is better. The feeling of security among the people has gone up.”
“There have been a lot of discussions vis-a-vis the NCRB-2017 data and the crime statistics over the past couple of days. Unnecessary comments are being made on the social media. Hence, in this situation, it became necessary to put forward the government’s point of view,” he said.
“We are in the government, and it is our duty to place the correct facts (before people). If wrong things are being said then it becomes necessary to for us to clarify,” he added.
The State Jal Shakti minister said no untoward incident was reported during the Lok Sabha polls or the Kumbh Mela under the Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath-led government.
“This is a big example of good governance,” he said.
Citing the NCRB data, Mr. Singh said, “In 2017, the number of cases registered under IPC (Indian Penal Code) in the country were 30.62 lakh, of which 3.10 lakh were in UP. This comes out to be 10.1 per cent, while in terms of population, U.P.’s share is 17.65 per cent in the country.”
As compared to 2016, he said, there has been a decline of 11.5 per cent in cases of murder, 7.4 per cent in dacoity, 9 per cent in loot and 54 per cent in extortion in the state in 2017.
Mr. Singh also pointed out that U.P. stood third in conviction of arrested accused, first in conviction of accused in women-related crimes, first in conviction in cyber crimes and first in seizure of arms.
He claimed that in the past two-and-a-half years of the BJP government’s tenure, there had been no problems in the state.
“The law and order situation of the state is being praised across the country,” he said.
With over three lakh FIRs being registered, Uttar Pradesh topped the crime list in the country, followed by Maharashtra, Madhya Pradesh, Kerala and Delhi, according to the NCRB data for 2017 released on Monday.
Overall, 30,62,579 cases were registered across the country in 2017, according to the data which was released after a delay of more than a year.
Of these, 3,10,084 were registered in U.P., which is the country’s most populous state, the NCRB report stated.
U.P. had recorded 2,82,171 cases in 2016 and 2,41,920 in 2015.
