Criminals punished at unprecedented pace in state, UP minister tells House

Lucknow, Dec 17 (PTI) Uttar Pradesh Parliamentary Affairs Minister Suresh Kumar Khanna on Tuesday claimed that under Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath's leadership, the government has ensured that criminals are punished at a pace never before witnessed in the state's history.

The minister was responding to a starred question posed by Samajwadi Party members Ravidas Mehrotra, Sangram Yadav, and Akhilesh Yadav on behalf of the chief minister during Question Hour on the second day of Winter Session of Uttar Pradesh Assembly.

The opposition leaders asked how many incidents of rape, crimes, and violent attacks against women took place between April 1, 2017, and August 20, 2024, and how many of those resulted in convictions.

Claiming that maintaining law and order is one of the greatest achievements of the current government, Khanna said during the above-mentioned period, 6,984 rape cases and 6,882 cases of molestation and violent attacks resulted in convictions.

During a supplementary discussion, SP members accused the government of failing to curb the rising crime rate in the state, particularly crimes against women.

In response, Khanna presented detailed statistics, asserting that there has been a year-on-year decline in crime incidents under Adityanath's governance.

Providing data, he said that 2,524 dowry deaths, 4,246 rapes, 12,607 cases of molestation, and 14,993 kidnappings were reported in 2017.

For the period between January 1 and August 31, 2024, 1,418 dowry deaths, 1,718 rapes, 5,178 cases of molestation, and 8,305 kidnappings were reported, he said.

He compared these figures to 2023, during which 2,061 dowry deaths, 2,614 rapes, 6,938 molestation cases, and 10,910 kidnappings were recorded, highlighting a substantial decline.

When SP members referred to data from the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) to criticise the state government, Khanna refuted their claims by citing NCRB's figures in support of his argument.

Asserting that prompt registration of cases related to crimes against women is a priority (for the government), Khanna said senior officials have been instructed to closely monitor the investigations to ensure that there is no laxity.

The minister also highlighted the government's initiatives to address women's grievances effectively, saying women's help desks have been established in all 1,647 police stations across the state.

These desks are aimed at promptly resolving issues faced by women who approach police stations for help, he added. PTI AR KIS ARI ARI