NCRB Report 2023: West Bengal Records 34,691 Crimes Against Women, India Logs 4.48 Lakh
PakkaHyderabadi 
NCRB data 2023 shows West Bengal logged 34,691 crimes against women, with domestic cruelty, rape, and abduction among top categories.
West Bengal recorded 34,691 cases of crimes against women in 2023, according to the latest National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) data. Adding 10,024 pending cases from 2022, the total caseload under investigation during 2023 reached 44,731.
The state police reported disposing of 34,344 cases during the year, maintained an impressive 93.8% charge-sheeting rate, and logged a pendency rate of 23.2%. Among the 1,110 rape cases, 27 involved minors, with the NCRB highlighting that in many instances, the accused were known to the victim.
The NCRB breakdown lists domestic cruelty, kidnapping and abduction, sexual assault, rape, and POCSO offences as the most common categories of crimes against women in West Bengal.
At the national level, India recorded 4,48,211 crimes against women in 2023, a marginal rise from 4,45,256 cases in 2022 and 4,28,278 in 2021. This corresponds to a crime rate of 66.2 incidents per lakh female population, based on mid-year projections of 6,770 lakh women.
The overall charge-sheeting rate across India stood at 77.6%. Among states, Uttar Pradesh topped the list with 66,381 reported cases, followed by Maharashtra (47,101), Rajasthan (45,450), West Bengal (34,691), and Madhya Pradesh (32,342).
When measured in terms of crime rate per 100,000 women, Telangana recorded the highest at 124.9, followed by Rajasthan (114.8), Odisha (112.4), Haryana (110.3), and Kerala (86.1).
Nationwide, the largest category of offences was cruelty by husband or relatives (Section 498A IPC), accounting for 1,33,676 cases. Kidnapping and abduction comprised 88,605 cases, while sexual assault (other than rape) totaled 22,149. In addition, 29,670 rape cases (including minors) were registered, along with 2,796 cases of attempted rape and 113 acid attacks.
Under special and local laws, 87,850 additional cases were registered. These included 15,489 under the Dowry Prohibition Act, 40,046 child-rape cases under POCSO, and 8,823 cases of insults to the modesty of women.
Police arrested 6,67,940 persons for crimes against women in 2023 — 5,87,441 men, 80,490 women, and 9 transgender individuals. While NCRB cautioned that the figures represent only police-recorded cases and may understate the real scale, the data underscores the serious challenges in tackling violence against women, with high pendency at both the police and court levels.
