Bhubaneswar, Nov 28 (PTI) The Odisha government on Thursday said four fast-track courts and a National Forensic University would be set up in the state to expedite conviction of women-related cases and other crimes.

This was stated by Law Minister Prithiviraj Harichandan in the Assembly while replying to a debate on the admissibility of an adjournment motion on "rising crimes against women".

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He was replying to the debate on behalf of Chief Minister Mohanj Charan Majhi, who holds charge of the Home department.

Harichandan said that the four proposed fast-track courts will be manned by women for dealing with crimes against women. He assured the House that the government will take all possible steps to punish criminals involved in crimes, particularly the crimes against women.

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The minister also claimed that the crime rate has declined in the past five months after Majhi took over the government. He said the cases of human trafficking have shown a downward trend and urged cooperation from all parties to tackle crime effectively.

Earlier, participating in the debate, opposition BJD and Congress members came down heavily on the BJP government and alleged that there has been a significant rise in crime over the past few months.

The opposition alleged that there has been a surge in crimes against women and minors, including rape, child marriage, newborn trafficking, and accidents.

BJD MLA Arun Sahoo attributed the rise in crime to irresponsible statements by some ministers, government insensitivity, leniency towards offenders, and lack of strict action. He also alleged that there has been political interference in police stations. "The morale of the police has been down due to political interference after BJP came to power," he alleged.

BJD member Ganeswar Behera alleged that actions were not being taken against influential persons even as they indulge in serious crimes.

Congress leader Ramchandra Kadam also expressed concern over the rise in crime against women including rape and gang rape.

Congress MLA Sofia Firdos demanded introduction of legislation similar to West Bengal's "Aparajita Act" and filling police vacancies to curb crime.

Ruling party members Sanatan Bijuli, Arshit Patnaik, Upasana Mohapatra, and Gourishankar Majhi dismissed the opposition's claims as baseless, and claimed the government is taking strong actions and achieving higher conviction rates.

(This is an unedited and auto-generated story from Syndicated News feed, LatestLY Staff may not have modified or edited the content body)