3 out of 4 rape accused walk free after trials in Haryana

Though overall the state witnessed a significant dip in the registration of rape cases in the year 2012 (668) as compared to the previous year (733),but the poor conviction rate has put paid to police efforts.

Blame it on the shoddy police investigations,the conviction in kidnapping cases is even worse with only 16.5 per cent of the accused being held guilty of the crime. The conviction rate includes 15 per cent in cases of kidnapping of women and 19.2 in cases of others. When it comes to ensuring safety and security of women,Haryana appears to be lacking on many fronts.

Consider this — conviction rate in cases of cruelty on women by husbands and their relatives in Haryana is merely 9.3 per cent,while it is 27 per cent in cases of dowry death and 23.3 per cent in cases where women’s modesty was outraged by the culprits.

After a spurt in brutal rape cases in the last one year,Haryana introduced various measures to curb the crime. However,the police investigations have further indicated that a lot more needs to be done for actually ensuring safety and security of the women.

“In almost all the cases,the accused are known to victims. Often times,both parties enter into compromise,leading to acquittal of the accused during the trials. Out the total 668 rapes reported in the 2012,at least 10 were committed by parents or close family members of the victims,58 by relatives,253 by neighbours and 347 by other persons known to the victims. In such circumstances,despite a foolproof investigation by the police,cases fall flat and the accused walk free after reaching a compromise,” a senior police officer told The Indian Express.

The NCRB’s figures for 2012 reveal that the North-East states have recorded the maximum conviction rate in terms of rape cases. Mizoram leads with 82.4 per cent convictions followed by Nagaland with 72.7 per cent ,Uttarakhand (63),Uttar Pradesh (50.3) and Delhi (49.3). Among the states with worst conviction rate in rape cases,Jammu and Kashmir (7.5) is at the top followed by Goa (8),West Bengal (10.9) and Andhra Pradesh (11.2).

As far as the overall conviction rate in cognizable crimes is concerned,Haryana registered mere 31.8 per cent being held guilty. However,the neighbouring Punjab,UP,Rajasthan and Delhi fared better with 37.5 per cent,52.6 per cent,61.3 per cent and 52.4 per cent respectively.