The Crime Capital

Sub Head: In this tech-savvy world, why can’t FIRs be registered through e-mails?

Raj (name changed) had purchased a latest cell-phone device to hit the market. Unmindful that this phone could land him in trouble, he was idling his way through ITO at 8 pm in the evening – a time when Delhi streets are still abuzz with people and traffic – when a call came. He slowed the bike, moved to the side of the road and picked up the call. As finished conversation, a young man came to him with request to make a call from his cell-phone. Raj refused. By then another man had come to the other side and put a knife across his abdomen. The first man too flashed out a knife, pointing it towards the other side. Before Raj could realize what was happening, the cell-phone was snatched away. Raj could do nothing as he was robbed, barely a stone’s throw distance from the police headquarters.
Abdi, a category I gazetted officer in Delhi Government took out some cash from bank on Shamnath Marg. He strolled to the bus stop close by and waited for the bus to arrive. The bus arrived and as he boarded, a man took out his purse from his rear pocket, where he had kept the cash only a few moments before. Alert, Abdi caught his arm and demanded his purse back. At that moment, three other men surrounded Abdi, blamed that he was actually the pickpocket and they have caught him red-handed trying to take out the purse from the other man’s pocket. With eyewitnesses blaming him too, the passengers sided with the three accomplices of the original pickpocket, as they thrashed Abdi. The pickpocket had presumably followed Abdi from the bank, as he also knew the exact amount of currency inside his purse, thereby further strengthening their case. With none to support him, Abdi helplessly watched the four men leave at the next bus stop. Only later, the co-passengers realized that they had erroneously beaten a Government officer.
A private bus was en route to Shastri Bhawan from Mandawali. Three knife-born men boarded the bus and commanded the driver to pull it aside. All the passengers on board were robbed of their jewellery, currency and gadgets in broad daylight.
These and many more such cases can be sighted that are enough to label Delhi as the crime capital of the country. Already an infamous den of white-collared criminals, Delhi is fast becoming the hub of all type of illegal and criminal activities.
Prostitutes and call girls roam around on important roads, brazenly flaunting their profession through lewd gestures. Only the police don’t recognize them. Certain areas of Delhi are infamous for pickpockets who roam freely. Rapes are happening almost daily with cases of rape being witnessed in the past on roadsides, in moving cars and inside the safety of houses. Old men living alone are no longer safe and cases of child-lifting and kidnapping abound. Cars and vehicles are being stolen regularly, accidents happening due to reckless driving, cases of road rage increasing and murders happening as the clock ticks, who would label Delhi as safe?
Still the police have not pulled up its sleeves to react accordingly. Delhiites in general are still afraid to go to the police with complaints. Some even accuse them of being covert accomplices to several crimes. FIRs are still not being registered in all cases and unless you are some who matters, your case wont be considered.
At times when even the police commissioner is talking of using technology to upgrade the police system, Delhiites only wonder why FIRs could not be registered through emails or fax. The police may follow up the case later but this would ensure that written records of the complaint are present for all times. A copy can be mailed to the commissioner as well. If and when this happens, only then will we know the true count o crimes happening in Delhi each day. But this is not going to be as police are sure going to find lame excuses for not implementing this. Who is bothered, after all?