Conviction rate in Pune falls from 25% in 2021 to 18% in 2023

One of the top concerns for the recently appointed Pune police commissioner should be the decline in the city’s conviction rate, which fell from 25% in 2021 to 18% in 2023. Although it reached 25% in 2021, the conviction rate in session cases fell to 15% in 2022 and 18% in 2023. 

In 2023, the conviction rate for Judicial Magistrate First Class (JMFC) fell from 51% in 2019 to 4%.

During a recent review meeting regarding conviction status, the police chief gave the zonal deputy commissioner of police instructions to investigate cases and assign blame.

According to information released by the Pune City Police, out of 14,589 cases filed in 2019, the conviction rate (session) was 16%. With 34,232 cases, the rate in 2020 was 23%. The percentage was 15% (12,658 cases) in 2022 and 25% (11,374 cases) in 2021.

In 2023, the city reported an 18% conviction rate on 14,536 cases.

The percentages for JMFC cases were 4% (2023), 10% (2022), 27% (2021), 5% (2020), and 51% (2019).

Officials claim that the fact that cases filed during the lockdown brought on by the Covid pandemic were only recently resolved by courts is one of the causes of the decline in conviction rates.

In Maharashtra, the conviction rate fell from 58.29% in 2020 to 41.36% in the first half of 2023. In order to hold public prosecutors and investigating officers accountable, the state government intends to modify the rules and is requesting a report on the circumstances.

In an effort to boost witness contact and prosecution liaison in order to boost the conviction rate, police have made the decision to put in place a support monitoring system.