Thiruvananthapuram: Kerala has been witnessing a surge in POCSO since 2018, while the conviction rates over all these years range from 15 percent to 36 percent.
Data shows that an average of 2,000 POCSO cases are registered every year. Number of cases registered in years from 2018 to 2022 and the conviction rates (in brackets) are as follows:
- 2022: 3,334 (15.4%)
- 2021: 2,647 (19.83%)
- 2020: 2,163 (24.85%)
- 2019: 1,283 (19.42%)
- 2018: 1,153 (35.98%)
It may be noted that the Kerala State Human Rights Commission had warned the government about the low conviction rate and sought its intervention to curb this. The major factors hindering conviction in POCSO cases are:
- Delay in probes
- Witnesses, and survivors turning hostile during probes
- Out-of-court settlements
- Lapses in evidence collection
Published: 03 Jan 2024, 07:20 am IST
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