UP Cabinet gives nod for setting 218 fast-track courts for rapes, crimes against children

Amid increasing reports of crime against women in the state, the Uttar Pradesh Cabinet on Monday cleared a proposal to set up 218 new fast-track courts, many of them to hear cases of sexual offences against children.

State Law Minister Brajesh Pathak told reporters that of total, 144 courts will hear cases of rape, while 74 courts will hear cases in which the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act has been slapped.

At present, the state has 81 fast-track courts to hear cases related to women, Pathak told PTI.

Now, the cases of rape will get transferred to the new fast-track courts, he said.

"The UP Cabinet has decided that 218 fast-track courts will be set up for the hearing of cases of rape and crimes committed on children,"