At 2%, West Bengal records lowest disposal rate of sexual offence cases

The fast-track special courts created for expediting the cases related to sexual offences disposed of 83 per cent cases in 2022 and 94 per cent in 2023, according to a report.

The report, titled “Fast Tracking Justice: Role of Fast-Track Special Courts in Reducing Case Backlogs”, says while Maharashtra and Punjab recorded a high rate of disposal of rape and POCSO cases with 80 per cent and 71 per cent, respectively, West Bengal at 2 per cent recorded the lowest rate of disposal. West Bengal has made functional only three of the 123 earmarked fast-track courts. The report said as of August 2024, a total of 755 such courts, including 410 exclusive POCSO courts, are functional out of the 1,023 sanctioned. A total of 2,14,463 of 4,16,638 rape and POCSO cases were disposed of since the launch of the fast-track courts in 2019.

The disposal rate of rape and POCSO cases across all courts in the country was alarmingly low, with only 10 per cent of cases being decided in 2022. Warning that India would need approximately three years to clear the backlog of 2,02,175 rape and POCSO cases at the level of the fast-track courts if no new cases are added, the report recommends immediately making all 1,023 such courts functional and setting up 1,000 more across the country.