Haryana and Rajasthan are the two states where over 20 per cent of the cases registered under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita (BNS) and later disposed of by the police were declared false, according to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB)’s “Crime in India 2024” report.If the police version is to be believed, residents of both states are filing false complaints in large numbers.In 2024, the Haryana Police disposed of 1.15 lakh cases registered under the IPC or BNS. Of these, 24,747 were declared “false”, accounting for 21.6 per cent of the disposed cases — the highest rate among all states in the country. The Haryana Police also declared 37,761 cases as “untraced” or “no clue”, which is close to 33 per cent of the disposed cases.Only 50,788 cases ended in filing of chargesheets, which is 44.3 per cent of the disposed cases. Over 22 per cent of cases remained pending at the end of 2024.In 2024, the Rajasthan Police disposed of 2.17 lakh IPC/BNS cases. Of these, 43,656 cases were declared false, accounting for 20.2 per cent of the disposed cases. Besides this, 36,862 cases were found true but were categorised as “untraced” or “no clue”, accounting for over 17 per cent of the disposed cases.Chargesheets were filed in 1.06 lakh cases, taking the charge-sheeting rate to 49.1 per cent of the disposed cases. Pendency at the end of 2024 in Rajasthan stood at 13.7 per cent.However, under Special Local Laws (SLL), which include the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, Arms Act, Dowry Prohibition Act, SC/ST Act and NDPS Act, the proportion of false cases was relatively low in both states.In Haryana, only 884 cases out of 57,415 disposed of by the police were declared false, accounting for 1.5 per cent. In Rajasthan, 2,856 cases out of 84,358 disposed cases were declared false, accounting for 3.4 per cent.Similarly, in Haryana, 5,249 crimes against women cases out of 14,688 disposed of by the police in 2024 were declared false, accounting for 35.7 per cent of the disposed cases.In crimes against children, 3,967 out of 7,368 disposed cases were declared false, amounting to 53.8 per cent. In crimes against Scheduled Castes, 466 out of 1,191 disposed cases, or 39.1 per cent, were declared false.In Rajasthan, 12,217 crimes against women cases out of 38,480 disposed cases were declared false, accounting for 31.7 per cent. In crimes against children, 1,751 out of 9,606 disposed cases were declared false, amounting to 18.2 per cent. In crimes against Scheduled Castes, 3,676 out of 7,491 disposed cases, or 49.1 per cent, were declared false.“In Haryana, there is free registration of cases. Every complaint is registered and thoroughly investigated. Only then do we arrive at the conclusion whether it is baseless, untraced or fit for filing of a chargesheet,” said a senior IPS officer.