India, on Thursday, became the ninth country in the world to have a National Registry for Sex Offenders. Home Minister Rajnath Singh introduced the database that will include names, photographs, residential address, fingerprints, DNA samples and PAN and Aadhaar numbers of the convicted sex offenders, the Indian Express reported.
The database will include offenders convicted under charges of rape, gang rape, POCSO and eve teasing.
It is also reported that the database will have about 4.5 lakh cases of first time and repeat offenders. The details on the database will compiled from prisons across the country.
The National Database on Sexual Offenders (NDSO) will not be made public, as in the United States and will be available only to law enforcement agencies. While the registry in the US is public, in other countries like Australia, Canada, Ireland, New Zealand, South Africa, Trinidad and Tobago and United Kingdom, such data of convicted sex offenders is maintained purely for law enforcement authorities.
According to the Indian Express, the data will stay stored for 15 years in case of those identified as 'low danger', 25 years for those posing 'moderate danger' and a lifetime for habitual offenders, violent criminals, and convicts in gangrape and custodial rapes.
The decision to form this database was taken in April as there was massive outrage within the country over cases of sexual assault on minors.
The government had also announced death penalty for those convicted of raping children below 12 years, as per the Criminal Law Ordinance.
(With inputs from The Indian Express.)
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