Raja Syed Rather
Srinagar, Apr 23 : There has been a surge in various criminal activities, including cases of police corruption, crimes against women, suicides and cyber fraud, data reveals.
According to the data, obtained through a Right to Information (RTI) request filed by M M Shuja in 2019, and available with the news agency, the number of cases registered against police personnel in the district Srinagar has seen variations over the years.
In 2019, 8 cases were reported, which increased to 12 in 2020, dropped to 3 in 2021, rose again to 6 in 2022, and declined to 4 in 2023.
Similarly, under the category of Crimes Against Women (CAW), there has been a steady increase in reported cases. In 2019, 48 cases were registered, followed by 47 in 2020, 41 in 2021, 70 in 2022, and a spike to 113 in 2023. Five cases were reported up to January 31, 2024.
The RTI data also reveals other categories of criminal activity. Regarding suicide cases, there were 15 cases registered in 2019, which increased to 26 in 2020, further rose to 51 in 2021, and decreased to 41 in 2022 and 34 in 2023. In the current year, 3 cases were reported up to January.
Similarly, the number of murder cases varied over the years, with 6 cases reported in 2019, 13 in 2020 and 2022, 24 in 2021, and 6 in 2023. Only 1 case was reported up to January this year.
Kidnapping and rape cases have also shown variations, with 98 cases reported in 2019, 21 in 2020, 100 in 2021, 128 in 2022, 100 in 2023, and 8 cases reported up to January this year.
The data further shows the prevalence of cyber fraud cases, with variations in the number of cases registered and arrests made over the years. In 2020, 27 cyber fraud cases were reported, resulting in 7 arrests and recovery of Rs 80 lakh. The figures increased in 2021, with 27 cases reported, 39 arrests made, and Rs 1.60 crore recovered. In 2022, 56 cases were registered, leading to 44 arrests and recovery of Rs 3 crore. In 2023, 56 cases were reported, 42 arrests were made, and Rs 2 crore was recovered. Up to January 2024, 1 cyber fraud case was reported, with recovery exceeding Rs 50 lakh.
Since 2019, 33 policemen have been implicated in corruption cases in Srinagar, resulting in the recovery of Rs 7.9 crore stolen through cyber crime. A total of 235 policemen have retired during this period.
