Crime In India

Agencies must boost synergy, share data to nab fugitives abroad: CBI chief

CBI Director Praveen Sood on Friday urged law enforcement agencies of the country to bring more synergy in efforts to bring fugitives from abroad by coming together and sharing their database. The CBI chief was addressing the state police chiefs and senior officers of the central agencies during the two-day conference on 'Extradition of Fugitives-Challenges and Strategies' organised by the agency. Sood stressed the need for different agencies to come together and share their databases to bring more synergy in efforts against wanted criminals, the agency's spokesperson said Friday, sharing details of the events. Chairing the valedictory session of the conference on Friday, Union Home Secretary Govind Mohan emphasised that the deliberations of the two-day conference would lay the road map for future strategy. He said that there is a need to improve the documentation so that the country's requests for assistance can withstand international legal scrutiny. "He also elaborated on the s

Delhi Police to soon launch MCOCA unit to tackle organised crime, gangsters

The Delhi Police is gearing up to launch a specialised unit under the Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act (MCOCA) to tighten the noose around gangsters and organised crime networks in the national capital and neighbouring states, police sources said on Wednesday. The proposal aims at strengthening investigations with dedicated forensic tools and technical support with senior officials specialist in cyber crime. "The unit has become necessary due to the growing number of gangsters and changing patterns of crime in the region," a source said. The new unit, according to the police source, will get support from the Crime Branch and the Special Cell providing technical and operational assistance. The initial strength of the unit will likely around 100 personnel. The source added that preliminary discussions have been held to frame the unit's structure. "It will primarily deal with cases involving gangs, foreign-based criminals, extortion rackets run from jails, gang rivalries, a

Maharashtra reported decline in 'Offences Against the State' in 2023: NCRB

Maharashtra reported a drop in Offences Against the State' in 2023 compared to the previous years, according to the latest data shared by the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB). There were 169 cases registered in 2023, against 174 in 2022 and 218 in 2021, the report said, adding that Maharashtra ranked seventh under this head. Uttar Pradesh topped the list in this category, which includes offences like damage to public property, sedition charges and matters under the Unlawful Activities Prevention Act (UAPA), with 1,749 cases, followed by Tamil Nadu with 834 cases and Assam (278 cases). In 2023, Maharashtra registered one case under section 124A (sedition) of the Indian Penal Code, which the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita has now replaced. Three cases were registered for imputation, assertions prejudicial to national integration in the state. The state recorded 163 cases under the Prevention of Damage to Public Property Act and one each under the UAPA and the Official Secrets Act in ...

NCRB data shows lower crime rate than national average in UP: State Police

Despite Uttar Pradesh having the highest population in the country, the crime rate in the state in 2023 stood at 181.3, much below the national crime rate of 270.3, the state police said on Wednesday, quoting the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data. Uttar Pradesh accounts for 16.98 per cent of the total population in the country. Crime rate, defined as the number of crimes per one lakh population, is considered the most reliable indicator for assessing a state's law and order situation, as it adjusts for population size and growth, the state police said in a statement. An analysis showed that Uttar Pradesh ranks favourably across various crime heads. For total crimes reported under the Indian Penal Code, the state was placed 20th among the 28 states and eight Union Territories. It was placed 29th in the number of 'murder' cases reported, with a crime rate of 1.4 against the national crime rate of 2. The state stood 30th in 'attempt to murder' cases with a crime rate o

Dip in murders; cybercrimes, crimes against STs spiked: NCRB 2023

India recorded 27,721 cases of murder in 2023, less by 2.8 per cent from 2022, while crimes against Scheduled Tribes rose by a staggering 28 per cent during the same period, latest data from the National Crime Records Bureau has revealed. Cybercrimes saw a 31.2 per cent increase with 86,420 cases, as compared to 65,893 reported in 2022, it said. The national record keeper of crimes and trends revealed that 28,522 cases of murder were reported in India in 2022, which came down to 27,721 cases in 2023, a dip of 2.8 per cent. "'Disputes' (9,209 cases) was the motive in the highest number of murder cases during 2023, followed by 'Personal Vendetta or Enmity' (3,458 cases) and 'Gain' (1,890 cases)," the report said. Crimes against Scheduled Tribes saw a jump of 28.8 per cent from 10,064 cases in 2022 to 12,960 cases in 2023, it said. The overall crime rate in the category also saw a surge from 9.6 in 2022 to 12.4 in 2023. According to the NCRB, the crime rate is crimes per lakh populat

Family demands proper probe into woman tourist's death in Wayanad resort

The family of a woman tourist who allegedly died in a hut collapse at a resort in this hill district, on Saturday expressed doubts over the cause of her death and demanded a proper probe into the incident. Speaking to reporters, the mother of the victim, Nimisha, said that her daughter and several of her friends were sleeping under the hut -- constructed using wooden poles and thatched with grass -- but nothing happened to others. Her brother said the reason for their suspicion is that there were no visible injuries or blood on Nimisha's body. "The postmortem report says that there were a lot of internal injuries, including broken bones. Moreover, the incident occurred around 2 am when everyone was sleeping in that big hut," he said. "Her friends said that four tents were set up inside the hut, and two people were sleeping in each of them. So, how come only our child suffered this fate? If something that big collapses, there would be injuries on the body. But, there was nothing lik

Badlapur accused encounter: HC slams govt for not filing FIR against cops

The Bombay High Court on Friday came down heavily on the Maharashtra government for not registering an FIR against five policemen over the custodial death of Akshay Shinde, accused in the Badlapur school sexual assault case, despite the court's explicit orders. The HC had on April 7 said when a prima facie offence is disclosed, it is mandatory for the police to register a case. The court had constituted a special investigation team under the supervision of Lakhmi Gautam, Joint Commissioner of Police, Crime. It had also directed the state Criminal Investigation Department (CID), which was probing Shinde's death in police custody, to hand over all case documents to Gautam within two days. On Friday, a bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale said it was appalled that its order was not complied with. "This is a brazen violation of our order. How can the state government not follow the orders passed by the high court? Criminal contempt proceedings will have to be initia

Two Navy officers among 3 held for extorting money from Agniveer aspirants

Odisha Police arrested three persons including two serving Navy personnel in Khurda district, on the charge of extorting money from Agniveer aspirants during a recruitment drive in November 2024, an officer said on Friday. The arrested persons were identified as Satyam Chahar, currently working at INS Kesari, Andaman and Nicobar, Vinay Kumar Ray, presently posted at INS Chilika and retired Navy official Bhoosan, a resident of Uttar Pradesh, the officer said. The trio were arrested based on a complaint lodged by Lieutenant Commander Adwitiya Singh, a training correspondence officer at INS Chilka, at Balugaon police station on April 19. The case was registered under charges of cheating and extortion. Khurda SP Sagarika Nath said that the arrested trio was accused of extorting a huge amount of money from Agniveer aspirants by promising them assistance in police verification, physical examination, and securing a job. "We have arrested three people and in search of two others allegedly

Eight held, including two juveniles, in teen's stabbing case in Delhi

Delhi Police has apprehended eight people, including two juveniles, in connection with the fatal stabbing of a 17-year-old boy in northeast Delhi's Seelampur area, officials said on Sunday. The eight accused were arrested on Saturday. Six of them were identified as Sahil (18), Sohaib (35), Nafish (32), Aneesh (19), Zahida (42) and Vikas (29), they said. On April 18, Zikra (19), who worked as a bouncer for jailed gangster Hashim Baba's wife, was arrested and sent to two-day police custody in the case, a senior police officer said. Kunal, a resident of New Seelampur, was stabbed to death in J-Block, Jhuggi Seelampur, on the evening of April 17. He was rushed to JPC Hospital by his family members, where doctors declared him dead. "Zikra, Sahil and the two juveniles conspired and carried out the fatal attack while the other five were involved in harbouring and helping the main accused escape," a senior official said. A case under sections 103(1) (murder) and 3(5) (common intention) of

Karnataka HM to discuss migrant workers-crime link with Labour Department

Karnataka Home Minister G Parameshwara on Monday said he would hold a combined meeting of Home and Labour departments along with Labour Minister Santosh Lad on measures that can be taken regarding the increasing number of crimes involving migrant labourers from other states. He said workforce coming to Karnataka from other states cannot be stopped, but there is a definite need to take note of criminal activities involving them and take measures against it. The Home Minister's statement came in the wake of alleged kidnapping and murder of a five-year-old girl in Hubballi by a 35-year-old Ritesh Kumar, who hails from Bihar's Patna, who was killed in a police firing on Sunday. "Labourers are coming from different parts of the country as Bengaluru is a fast developing city and also across Karnataka. In many cases we see they are involved in criminal activities. We definitely need to take note of this," Parameshwara said in response to a question that people coming from other parts of th

Mumbai Police collects Saif's blood sample, clothes for investigation

The remand copy of the accused available with ANI states that the clothes Saif Ali Khan was wearing at the time of the attack were taken into police custody for investigation

We must finds ways to tackle live-in relationship to save moral values: HC

Although live-in relationships have no social sanction, the youths' attraction to it demands there must be devised some framework or solution to save "moral values" of the society, the Allahabad High Court has observed. Justice Nalin Kumar Srivastava made the observation while granting bail to Varanasi-based Akash Keshari, who was booked under various sections of IPC and SC/ST Act for allegedly establishing physical relations with a woman on pretext of marriage. Keshari allegedly refused to marry the person, who approached Sarnath Police Station of Varanasi district. "So far as the live-in relationship is concerned, it has got no social sanction but since the youth is attracted to such relations because a young person, male or female, can easily escape from his or her liability to his or her partner, their attraction is rapidly increasing in favour of such relations. "It is high time we all thought and tried to find out some framework and solution to save the moral values of the ..

Shraddananda virtually seeks direction to Prez for mercy plea: Centre to SC

The Centre on Friday informed the Supreme Court that the plea of Swamy Shraddananda, jailed for over 30 years for the murder of his wife, has virtually sought a direction to the President to decide his mercy petition. A bench of Justices B R Gavai and Augustine George Masih was hearing a petition filed by 84-year-old Shraddananda alias Murali Manohar Mishra seeking a direction to the authorities to decide his mercy plea filed before the President in December, 2023. Additional solicitor general K M Nataraj, appearing for the Centre, sought to get instructions on the plea and said, "However, the prayer is virtually seeking a direction to the President to do it. Whether such a prayer could be considered at all? Kindly see the prayer." Advocate Varun Thakur, appearing for Shraddananda, said the petitioner was in jail for over 30 years and was suffering from ailments. "You (Shraddananda) must thank this court that you were saved that time," the bench said and posted the hearing after tw

Saif Stabbing Case: Court extends police custody of accused till Jan 29

Court observed that there is substantial progress in the matter and to investigate other consequential aspects is necessary

SC refuses to cancel bail of actor Darshan, others in murder case

The Supreme Court on Friday refused to cancel the bail granted to Kannada actors Darshan Thoogudeepa, Pavithra Gowda, and five others in the Renukaswamy murder case but agreed to examine the Karnataka government's challenge. A bench of Justices J B Pardiwala and R Mahadevan issued notice to Darshan and others on the state's plea against the Karnataka High Court's bail order. The state government, the apex court said, apprehended other co-accused would be allowed to take advantage of order passed by the high court in the impugned order. "Since state is praying for cancellation of bail, it would not be proper to stay the operation of the order as it would amount to cancellation of bail. Yet, to protect the interest of prosecution, if any co-accused prays on bail, the court concerned shall not place reliance on the order challenged before us. Any bail application filed shall be decided on its own merit," the bench said. The Karnataka High Court on December 13, 2024, granted bail to th

Saif Ali Khan attack: Police visits actor's house to record his statement

Saif's return home was closely followed by heavy police security, and visuals of the actor exiting the hospital with a smile and waving at the paparazzi

RG Kar case: HC to hear medic's family, CBI before admission of WB's appeal

The Calcutta High Court on Wednesday said it would hear the CBI, the victim's family and the convict before deciding on the admission of an appeal filed by the West Bengal government claiming inadequacy of sentence given by a trial court in the RG Kar hospital rape-murder case. The high court said it will hear the matter on Monday. The CBI opposed the state's right to file an appeal in the case, claiming that it was the prosecuting agency and had the right to prefer the appeal on the grounds of inadequacy of the sentence. The Sealdah court on Monday sentenced Roy to life imprisonment till death for the rape and murder of an on-duty doctor at the RG Kar Medical College and Hospital on August 9. A division bench, presided by Justice Debangshu Basak, said that it would hear the CBI, the family of the victim and the convict through their lawyers before deciding on the admission of the state government's appeal.

Sharon Raj murder: Kerala girl gets death sentence for poisoning ex-lover

Greeshma, a literature student from Tamil Nadu, and Sharon, a BSc Radiology student from Kerala, were in a year-long relationship that ended with Sharon's murder in 2022

Badlapur sexual assault case: 5 cops found responsible for custodial death

A magistrate's inquiry has held five policemen responsible for the custodial death of Akshay Shinde, accused in the Badlapur school sexual assault case. The magistrate on Monday tendered its inquiry report to the Bombay High Court, which was hearing a plea filed by Shinde's father, Anna Shinde, claiming his son was killed by the police in a fake encounter. Akshay Shinde (24) was arrested in August 2024 for allegedly sexually assaulting two minor girls inside the toilet of a school in Badlapur. He was an attendant at the school. In September, Shinde was killed in an alleged police shootout while being taken from the Taloja prison for questioning. The police claimed he snatched the gun of one of the police personnel in the police van, opened fire, and was killed in retaliatory firing. Under the law, a magistrate inquiry is initiated in cases where an accused dies in police custody. A division bench of Justices Revati Mohite Dere and Neela Gokhale perused the report. The bench said

Accused got aggressive, did not touch jewellery: Kareena on Saif attack

Saif Ali Khan's wife and actress Kareena Kapoor Khan has informed the police that the intruder who entered their house in Mumbai got aggressive during the scuffle but did not touch jewellery kept in the open, an official said on Saturday. The police recorded the actress's statement following the attack at the Bollywood star couple's apartment in Bandra in the early hours of Thursday, the official said. An intruder attacked Khan (54) after entering his 12th-floor apartment in the Satguru Sharan building. The actor sustained multiple stab wounds, including on his neck, and was rushed to Lilavati Hospital, where he underwent emergency surgery. The official said Kareena, in her statement, said the intruder got very aggressive during the scuffle with Saif, stabbing him multiple times. He, however, did not touch the jewellery kept in the open. He said the police are yet to record Khan's statement. After the incident, Kareena's sister, actress Karishma Kapoor, took her to her residence i