India witnessed over 6.24 million cognisable crimes in 2023, equating to a crime every five seconds, according to the National Crime Records Bureau’s (NCRB) Crime in India 2023 report. This represents a 7.2% increase from 2022, with the crime rate per lakh population rising from 422.2 to 448.3. Of the total cases, 3.76 million were under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), while 2.48 million fell under Special and Local Laws (SLL).
Cybercrime and ST Offences Rise Sharply
Cybercrime saw a significant jump of 31.2% to 86,420 cases, with nearly 69% related to fraud. Crimes against Scheduled Tribes (STs) spiked by 28.8% to 12,960 cases, led by incidents in Manipur amid ongoing ethnic violence. These included dacoity, arson, intimidation, and land disputes. “Simple hurt” (21.3%) and riots (13.2%) formed the majority of offences against STs. In contrast, crimes against Scheduled Castes (SCs) increased marginally by 0.4% (57,789 cases).
Women and Children Remain Vulnerable
Crimes against women rose 0.7%, totaling 4,48,211 cases, primarily involving cruelty by husbands or relatives (29.8%), kidnapping and abduction (19.8%), and sexual assault (18.7%). Offences against children increased 9.2% to 1.77 lakh cases, with kidnapping, abduction (45%), and POCSO Act violations (38.2%) leading.
Trends in Murders, Kidnappings, and Property Crimes
Murders declined by 2.8% to 27,721 cases, whereas kidnapping and abduction rose 5.6%, affecting over 1.16 lakh victims. “Simple hurt” alone accounted for more than 6.36 lakh incidents. Offences against property increased 4.7% to 8,78,307 cases, with theft forming the majority. Properties worth Rs 6,917.2 crore were stolen, but only Rs 2,065 crore (29.9%) was recovered. Economic crimes, including forgery, cheating, and fraud, rose 6% to 2.04 lakh cases.
Decline in State-Related Offences
Offences against the State dropped 13.1%, and crimes targeting senior citizens fell by 2.3%. Human trafficking cases decreased slightly by 3%, with 2,183 cases reported.
Transition to Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita
The NCRB noted that 2023 marked the final full year of crime data under the IPC before the introduction of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) in July 2024. Future reports will adopt the new legal framework.
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