Crimes against women surge: Telangana leads South, Hyderabad ranks second in cyber abuse cases

Telangana recorded a 7.31% rise in crimes against women in 2023, with 23,678 cases compared to 22,066 in 2022, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report published on September 20, 2025. The State topped South India in this category, accounting for 5.28% of India’s 4.48 lakh cases.

Cruelty by husband or relatives formed the largest share at 55.5%, with 10,518 cases, representing 7.87% of the national tally of 1.33 lakh incidents. Other categories included 5,024 assaults on women with intent to outrage modesty, 2,152 kidnaps and abductions, 817 rapes and 145 dowry deaths. Stalking accounted for 1,884 cases, while 165 incidents were of voyeurism.

Uttar Pradesh topped the country with 56,083 cases, followed by Rajasthan (40,738) and Maharashtra (39,526).

Hyderabad alone reported 3,822 cases, contributing 7.43% of the 51,393 incidents across 19 metropolitan cities. These included 1,743 instances of cruelty by husband or relatives, 751 assaults, 273 kidnaps and abductions, 173 rapes and 15 dowry deaths. The city also saw 416 cases of stalking and 47 incidents of voyeurism.

Among metros, Delhi led with 13,366 cases, followed by Mumbai (6,025), Bengaluru (4,870) and Jaipur (3,872), with Hyderabad ranking close behind. Lucknow came next with 2,902 cases.

The year also saw crimes against women increasingly shift to the digital sphere. Telangana registered 120 cases under the Information Technology Act, of which 78 related to the circulation of sexually explicit content under Sections 67A and 67B, while 42 involved blackmailing, morphing, defamation or fake profiles.

Hyderabad reported 53 such cases, ranking second among the 19 metropolitan cities, behind only Bengaluru, which reported 127 cases. Of these, 47 were linked to sexually explicit content, while six involved other forms of online abuse. Lucknow (41) and Delhi (36) followed Hyderabad.