Home secretary Rajiv Mehrishi says hate crime is over-reported and over-hyped

Jaipur: Union Home Secretary Rajiv Mehrishi on Saturday said hate crime is not new in the country and that such incidents have been over-reported and over-hyped particularly by the electronic media. “Hate crime is not a new sort of crime in India. It is a feudal crime which has happened over the ages. Such crimes today shake the conscience of people and disturb them much more than the past,” he said. “They have been taking place over decades and it is not a different crime,” Mehrishi said at the ‘State of the States’ conclave of India Today group in Jaipur. [caption id=“attachment_2340150” align=“alignleft” width=“380”] Union home secretary, Rajiv Mehrishi. Image courtesy PIB[/caption] “A crime is a crime and should be handled with strictness, fairness and justice must be done,” he said. He also said that an entire paradigm shift in policing is needed to drastically improve the situation in the country. He stressed that changes in training methodology and structure in police department should take place and people should make themselves responsible because the government cannot do everything. Speaking on the cyber crime scenario, ADG (Crime) Rajasthan Police, Pankaj Kumar Singh said new challenges have emerged with the changing pattern of crime. “Serious concern today is for the safety of digital transactions. Financial crime is rising and it is a challenge. Security of database is a main challenge and companies should be prepared and responsible enough to ensure the safety of people’s database,” he said.