Bhubaneswar: As many as 17,528 rape and 13,246 murder cases have been reported in Odisha over last 10 years, said a minister Monday. Minister of state for Home Dibya Sankar Mishra informed this while replying to a written question by Congress MLA Narasingh Mishra in the Assembly.
Mishra said that 17,528 rape cases and 13,246 murder cases have been reported from 2010 to 2019 (up to May). He said that 937 rape cases have been registered till May this year while 2,502 cases were reported in 2018 and 2,221 cases in 2017.
The police have registered 563 murder cases up to May this year. In 2018, the figure was 1,378.
A total of 45,628 cognizable crimes have been registered up to May in 2019, informed the minister. The police have registered 18,524 rioting related cases from 2010-2019.
The minister, however, refused to agree with the Opposition’s remark that the overall crime rate in the state has reached alarming proportions.
The minister, however, said, “It is not true that crime rate has alarmingly increased in the state.” The Congress leader, on his part, warned that delay in providing justice to people could lead to anarchy in the state, with people taking law in their hands.
“There has been a rise in cases of murder and rape, but the minister is not ready to accept it as alarming. There have been 300 more rape cases in 2018 in comparison to 2017. When will the state treat them as alarming?” he asked. The opposition leader, a former law minister, also alleged that the police were not taking necessary action against criminals, thereby encouraging unlawful activities.
“Our (opposition’s) questions and concerns go unheard in the Assembly. Are we talking to walls instead of the government?” he said, seeking a clarification from the Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.