Nagaland witnesses dip in cases registered against juveniles

DIMAPUR — Nagaland witnessed a decrease in the number of registered cases involving juveniles, reporting a total of five cases in 2022, compared to eight in the previous year, while the law enforcement apprehended as many as 12 juveniles under the category of Juveniles in conflict with the Law, encompassing offenses related to the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Special and Local Laws (SLL).

According to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report released recently, of the five cases registered in Nagaland under IPC and SLL in 2022, one pertained to murder, another related to culpable homicide not amounting to murder, and one each under causing death by negligence, theft (Sections 379-382 IPC) and the Arms Act.

Out of 12 juveniles apprehended in five cases, five of them were sent home after advice or admonition, while the remaining seven 7 cases are still pending disposal.

A total of 30,555 cases were registered against Juveniles across the country during 2022, which is a decline of 2.0% over 2021 (31,170 cases). The crime rate declined from 7.0 in 2021 to 6.9 in 2022.

While a total of 37,780 juveniles were apprehended in 30,555 cases in the country during 2022, 33,261 were apprehended under the IPC and 4,519 apprehended under cases of SLL.

Majority of juveniles in conflict with law, apprehended under IPC and SLL crimes during the period, were in the age group of 16 to 18 years (78.6%).

Meanwhile, only four cyber crime cases were reported in Nagaland during 2022, against eight such cases registered in the previous year. Out of the four cyber crime cases, two were computer-related offences and the remaining two under identity theft.