The Hindu : New Delhi News : Sexual harassment cases on the rise

Online edition of India's National Newspaper
Monday, May 09, 2005

New Delhi

New Delhi

Sexual harassment cases on the rise

UP, Haryana top list, Lakshadweep safest

NEW DELHI: Women in Uttar Pradesh and Haryana are increasingly becoming victims of sexual harassment, if the increase in the number of cases registered in this regard is anything to go by.

According to latest official figures, the number of cases of sexual harassment reported in Haryana jumped by more than three times between 2001 and 2003, up from 401 to 1,302.

In Uttar Pradesh, 4,970 such cases were registered in 2003, nearly twice as many recorded in 2001 (2,575).

However, there was a sharp decline in the number of rape cases in the state, according to the figures tabled in Parliament.

While 1,958 rape cases were registered in 2001, the figure came down to 1,415 and 911 in the two successive years.

Overall too, crime against women registered in Uttar Pradesh nearly halved in the three years, falling from 20,227 to 12,840.

Tamil Nadu also showed a significant fall in such cases, down from 10,111 in 2001 to 8,888 in 2003.

In the national capital Delhi, however, there was a sharp increase in cases of crime against women, especially of cruelty by husband or his relatives.

While 2,291 cases were registered in 2001, the number went up to 3,282 two years later -- up 41 per cent. Cases of cruelty by husband or his relatives showed a 777 per cent increase, up from 138 in 2001 to 1,211 in 2003.

According to the figures, Andhra Pradesh, Madhya Pradesh, Maharashtra and Rajasthan, besides Uttar Pradesh, had reported more than 10,000 cases of crimes against women in 2003.

Andhra Pradesh had the dubious distinction of recording the most cases for a single state or Union territory -- 18,382, which was 13 per cent of the 1,40,601 such cases recorded across the country.

However, cases under Immoral Trafficking Protection Act (ITPA) in the state decreased from 1,332 to 349 between 2001 and 2003.

The Union territory of Lakshadweep appeared to be the safest for women with just four cases of crimes against them recorded in 2003.

Among the states, the honour went to Nagaland with just 25 cases.

In fact, the Union territories and north-eastern states, other than Assam, seemed to be havens of safety for women with none of them recording more than 150 cases in 2003.

There was not a single case of dowry death or sexual harassment in Arunachal Pradesh, Manipur, Mizoram, Sikkim, Daman and Diu and Lakshwadeep.

- PTI

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