Harish Rao raises concern over collapse of law and order in Telangana

BRS leader T Harish Rao criticised the Telangana government citing NCRB 2024 data showing a sharp rise in cybercrime, missing persons and crimes against women and children. He held the state leadership responsible for worsening law and order conditions.

Hyderabad: BRSLP deputy leader T Harish Rao raised concern over deterioration of law and order in Telangana under the Revanth Reddy government. He said the latest NCRB 2024 report exposed Telangana as one of the most crime-affected States in the country and held Revanth Reddy, who also holds the Home portfolio, directly responsible for the situation.

In a statement, Harish Rao alleged that despite regular reviews at the Integrated Command and Control Centre, crimes, cyber frauds, kidnappings and offences against women and children were rising steadily across the State. He accused the Congress government of focusing on publicity, political vendetta and media management, instead of governance and public safety.

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According to the NCRB data, Telangana recorded 27,230 cybercrime cases in 2024, the highest in the country and over one-fourth of the national total. Of this, cyber fraud cases alone stood at 21,987. Telangana also recorded 25,500 missing person cases in 2024, with nearly 4,500 persons yet to be traced.

Kidnapping and abduction cases rose to 3,372, while crimes against children stood at 6,767, with girls accounting for over 70 per cent of kidnapped child victims. Crimes against women increased to 24,495 in 2024 from 22,066 in 2022. Telangana also reported 423 human trafficking cases, the highest among all States and Union Territories.

The NCRB report showed that total cognisable crimes in Telangana increased to 2,17,976 in 2024 from 1,83,644 in 2023. The State’s crime rate stood at 568.9 cases per lakh population, significantly higher than the national average of 418.9. Atrocities against SC/ST communities also rose significantly.

Contrasting the present situation with the previous BRS regime, Harish Rao said sensitive crimes were solved swiftly through strong policing and intelligence coordination. He cited the Aurobindo Pharma kidnapping case, which was cracked within hours during the BRS rule. He alleged that even a recent daylight robbery in Karimnagar remained unsolved for several days under the current Congress government.

The BRS leader demanded immediate corrective measures, strengthening of intelligence systems, faster investigation of cybercrime and missing person cases, stronger protection for women and children, and accountability from the Congress government over the worsening law and order situation in Telangana.

“Most shocking is the poor investigation and enforcement record. Thousands of cybercrime complaints remain unresolved and thousands of missing persons are still untraced. Public safety cannot be sacrificed for political image management,” he asserted, adding that Revanth Reddy who also holds Home portfolio cannot escape responsibility.