Begin typing your search...
Cupid plays villain in kidnap cases across country
Marriage and relationships is the reason behind the majority of kidnappings reported. Records show an increasing trend as kidnaps went up by 6 per cent
By
migrator
migrator
Chennai
Getting married to a girl against her wish by forcibly kidnapping her, once romanticised and hailed as an act of valour, is no longer fashionable, the statistics and trend do not endorse prevalence of such a psyche among the societies here.
The state has recorded as many as 1,746 victims as kidnapped in 2014, while it dipped to 1,603 in 2015 and further dipped to 1,223 in 2016, as against the national trend. The state accounts for 1.4 per cent of the total share, and is ranked 17 based on incidence ratio, while Chennai and Coimbatore are ranked 18 and 16 respectively, among the cities in terms of incidence ratio.
The trend of kidnapping men and women for marriage hovers over 30,000 victims across the nation consistently since 2013. A total of 89,875 (23,350 male and 66,525 females) were kidnapped or abducted, out of which the maximum number of persons were kidnapped or abducted for the purpose of marriage (33,855) during 2016.
The figure also includes as many as 16,938 children including an under-age teen were kidnapped for the purpose of marriage while 59 among those kidnapped for marriage were male.
Statistics revealed a steady increase in the number of persons being kidnapped, and a corresponding increase in the number of persons being kidnapped for marriage. The number of those kidnapped for marriage was slightly less in 2015 wherein 31,942 persons were abducted for marriage while the nation reported a total of 84,483 being kidnapped that year. As many as 78,446 persons were kidnapped across the country in 2014, and of which 31,040 were kidnapped for marriage. In 2013, India recorded 66,441 persons being kidnapped, of which 30,139 were kidnapped for marriage.
A senior police official reasoned that elopement among the families in India gets mostly registered as a kidnap complaint which keeps the purpose of marriage on top in statistics. “The families despite being aware of the fact that their children had eloped on mutual consent would still file a complaint of kidnap, and insist the same be pursued. In most cases, it would be proved otherwise. NCRB statistics is based on the FIR’s registered across. Thus, the number hovers always above the rest of the reasons/purposes for kidnap,” the official told DT Next.
“In cases of illegal intimacy wherein the paramours decide to marry, and to turn a new leaf in their life, would also fall under this category of getting married. It would be initially reported as a case of kidnap, and once we reach those missing, we would be able to establish that they had gone on mutual consent. This would change the course of the case, and lead it to a closure as mistake of fact,” another senior police official said.
As many as 1,588 were abducted in 2016 for the purpose of illicit intercourse while 228 were kidnapped for murder, 630 for unlawful activity, 440 for adoption, 168 for ransom, 250 for revenge, 59 for prostitution, 44 for begging, 17 for slavery, and 17 for sale. The cases where the clear reason behind the kidnap could not be established accounted for 33,949, which was almost equivalent to those kidnapped for marriage.
When contacted, senior IPS officer R Sudhakar said that the first thing the family of any girl who elopes is to file a kidnap either against a known person or an unknown person, which makes marriage being cited as the top reason for any kidnap of a woman. “In case of a minor girl, the law also suggests that necessary section of kidnap should be invoked, even if the minor’s consent was in favour of the boy or man who fled with her,” he added.
Child rights activist Prof Andrew Sesuraj who concurred with the view of cops observed that the case turns soft soon after the family learns that the person who had fled with their girl is known, and from the same caste, and such cases are not pursued thereafter which are eventually closed by the cops.
“Everything goes haywire if the adolescent who was in love with the girl is from a lower caste especially a Dalit while the girl is a caste-Hindu. Such cases would remain open if the parents were able to force the girl walkout on the boy unless the girl and her lover remain at large until she becomes a major,” he noted.
During 2016, a total of 69,599 kidnapped persons (18,974 males and 50,625 females) were traced of which 69,274 persons were alive and 325 persons dead.
Victims in Tamil Nadu
2014: 1,746
2015: 1,603
2016: 1,223
- A total of 88,008 cases of kidnapping were reported in 2016 in the country, registering an increase of 6 per cent while 82,999 victims were kidnapped in 2015.
- The maximum number of persons kidnapped or abducted is for the purpose of marriage ie 33,855 out of 89,875 (23,350 male and 66,525 females) kidnapped in 2016.
- Uttar Pradesh (15,898 cases) reported the highest number of cases of kidnapping accounting for 18.1% followed by Maharashtra with 10.6% (9,333 cases) and Bihar with 8.3% (7,324 cases) in 2016.
- In 2016, a total of 69,599 kidnapped or abducted persons (18,974 males and 50,625 females) were rescued of which 69,274 persons were rescued alive and 325 persons were dead.
Visit news.dtnext.in to explore our interactive epaper!
Download the DT Next app for more exciting features!
Click here for iOS
Click here for Android
Next Story
