Lock-up escapee rate highest in Punjab last year, says NCRB
Jupinderjit Singh
Chandigarh, December 4
The Punjab Police lock-ups seemed to be the weakest in the country as the state topped in the number of escapees from police stations, says the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report for 2022. The state was, however, ranked the third highest in overall escapees from the police custody.
No FIR in industrial disputes
- There was no FIR for crime incident due to water dispute or industrial dispute or for any caste conflict. There was only one FIR for rioting in the state
- In total, 86 persons escaped from the clutches of the Punjab Police. This include 70 from outside the police station when the accused were on way to court appearance. Maharashtra had highest overall escapees at 109 while MP has 108
Sixteen persons ran away in Punjab from lock-ups with Maharashtra reporting second with 13 escapees. Madhya Pradesh and Andhra Pradesh were joint third with 10 escapees each.
In total, 86 persons escaped from the clutches of the Punjab Police. This include 70 from outside the police station when the accused were on way to court appearance. Maharashtra had highest overall escapees at 109 while Madhya Pradesh has 108.
Punjab arrested 16 police personnel for the reason and chargesheeted eight of them. The Uttar Pradesh Government is top in this category with 29 cops arrested for the escapes out of which 25 were chargesheeted. Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh governments seemed to be too lenient as no cop was held for negligence leading to the escapes.
Suicides
The Punjab Police ranked second for the number of suicides in police lock-up before the accused was taken on police remand (not produced in court). Punjab recorded six such suicides while Gujarat reported eight with Madhya Pradesh third at two such deaths.
Death of cops
Punjab also topped the country in accidental deaths of cops by self-weapons. Eight cops died during duty when their weapons went off by accident. However, sources say many of these incidents are usually suicides, but passed off as accidental firing to enable the family to avail compensation.
Tripura with three deaths was the second highest while Telangana was third with one case only.
The NCRB report also states that in Punjab, no case was registered for being part of unlawful assembly or for causing communal and sectarian violence. Similarly, there was no FIR for crime incident due to water dispute or industrial dispute or for any caste conflict. There was only one FIR for rioting in the state.
