KASHIPUR: Courts in Uttarakhand's Udham Singh Nagar decided a total of 9,165 criminal cases in 2025, but the conviction rate in the matters, including those involving serious offences such as POCSO, rape and murder remained at just 31 per cent, according to information obtained under the RTI Act.
The data was procured by Kashipur-based (Right to Information) RTI activist and advocate Nadeem Uddin.
"I had sought details from the Directorate of Prosecution regarding convictions and acquittals in criminal cases during 2025," Nadeem Uddin told TNIE.
"The information shows that in several serious categories, the number of acquittals was much higher than convictions," he said.
As per the RTI reply, sessions courts decided 150 serious cases filed under the Indian Penal Code (IPC), including offences such as murder, robbery, dacoity and rape. Of these, convictions were recorded in 40 cases, while 91 cases ended in acquittal. Another 19 cases were quashed or consigned to record.
"The figures indicate that in many cases, the prosecution and police could not prove the charges before the court," Nadeem said.
The special POCSO court decided 141 cases in 2025. Convictions were recorded in only 27 cases, while 99 ended in acquittal and 15 were quashed or consigned. The conviction rate stood at 21 per cent. POCSO pendency rose from 645 cases to 692, with 188 new cases filed.
In cases under other Acts triable by sessions courts, the conviction rate was much higher at 75 per cent. A total of 542 such cases were decided in 2025, with convictions in 351 cases and acquittals in 114. Another 45 cases were quashed or consigned.
At the subordinate court level, including magistrate courts, 341 IPC cases ended in conviction, while 126 resulted in acquittal. During the same period, 537 cases were settled through compromise, and 304 were quashed or consigned. The conviction rate in these IPC matters stood at 73 per cent.
In cases under other Acts before subordinate courts, convictions were recorded in 2,064 cases, while 83 ended in acquittal. As many as 1,168 cases were quashed or consigned. The conviction rate in this category was shown as 96 per cent.
Officials noted that this category also includes challans and fine-related cases under laws such as the Motor Vehicles Act.
The RTI information also highlights pendency trends. At the beginning of 2025, 3,465 cases were pending before sessions courts in Udham Singh Nagar. By year-end, this number rose to 3,794, despite 1,021 new cases being filed during the year.
In subordinate courts, however, pendency reduced from 30,716 cases at the beginning of the year to 27,246 by year-end. During this period, 1,311 new cases were filed.
In the special SC/ST court, 14 cases were decided, with two convictions and two acquittals, while 10 were quashed or consigned. Pendency reduced from 90 to 87 cases.
The special Gangster court decided five cases, recording one conviction and three acquittals. One case was quashed or consigned.
The special NDPS court decided 117 drug-related cases, with convictions in 73 and acquittals in 14. Thirty cases were quashed or consigned. NDPS pendency increased from 1,117 cases to 1,213 by the end of 2025.
