Rajnath Singh expresses displeasure over low prosecution and conviction rates in North East

Low prosecution and conviction rates in the Northeast may erode people's faith in criminal justice system, Home Minister Rajnath Singh said on Tuesday and asked police chiefs of the region to pay special attention to it.

Addressing a meeting of chief secretaries and DGPs of the region, Singh said in several states, kidnapping, abduction and extortion were rampant but in such cases, prosecution and conviction rate was less than 1 per cent, "which is unacceptable".

"Unfortunately, in some states in the Northeast, prosecution in criminal cases and conviction rate is very poor. In one state, the prosecution rate is just 5 per cent against the all India rate of 86 per cent," he said. The home minister said poor investigation is the main reason for high acquittal rates in the Northeast.

Singh said if a criminal gets acquitted even after committing a crime, then the faith of common people in justice system gets eroded. "If the acquittal ratio is very high, then not only the moral legitimacy of the state gets undermined, but it incentivises the crimes. There is a need for special attention by the police chief in this area," he said.

Singh said the scientific tools were not used adequately for investigation in the Northeast and the condition of forensic science laboratories was also not satisfactory in several states.