Telangana: In a shocking estimate, an average seven cases of sexual assault on minors are recorded in Telangana every day, according to the National Crime Record Bureau (NCRB) report with as many as 2,567 cases filed under the POCSO Act alone in 2021. Not just women, minors including children too continue to face harassment, threats, sexual assault, rape and many other atrocities.
Within days of the Jubilee Hills pub scandal erupting in Hyderabad, a series of assaults in the city in Necklace Road, Moghalpura, Kalapathar and Nizamabad came to the light. From abducting and raping a 9-month-old baby sleeping next to its mother to molesting a seventeen-year-old girl, child abuse cases are being widely reported in the state.
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Though thousands of cases were filed, justice was served only in a few. Police were able to convict 44 accused from among 39 cases. Ironically, officials were seen showing keen interest only when an attack was highlighted in the media. Police have been criticized for failing to reassure victims and witnesses until judgement has been meted out.
Police were able to convict the accused who raped and killed a baby in Warangal. With the exception of such sensational cases, the response to the investigation of the remaining child assault cases remained elusive. According to the National Crime Records Bureau's 2020 report, the police had investigated a total of 4,332 cases in Telangana by the end of 2021 and 2,924 (40.3 percent) cases were still pending. That is worse than the national average of 36.8 percent.
Watching pornography on smartphones, and getting addicted to alcohol and drugs became the main reasons behind sexual assaults. The convicted in the child rape case at Saidabad was found to be high on marijuana when he had attacked the victim. Alcohol which has been sold round the clock in the state and the rising menace of drugs is said to be the root cause of increase in sexual crimes.
As per the official statistics, 197 cases were reported in Hyderabad, 226 in Cyberabad and 237 in Rachakonda within the first half of 2021. After that, 74 cases were registered in Khammam Commissionerate, 73 in Bhadradri Kothagudem, 69 in Ramagundam Commissionerate, 69 in Nalgonda and 62 in Mahabubnagar. Based on these statistics, it has been clear that sexual crimes are on the rise everywhere.
