Double engine of law and order in UP. Lucknow News
The law and order story of Uttar Pradesh in the last nine years has emerged as one of the most defining pillars of governance under the Yogi Adityanath government. According to officials, what was once considered a state battling crime networks and weak enforcement has undergone a visible and structured transformation.“At the core of this transformation lies an aggressive and sustained crackdown on mafias, organized syndicates and street-level criminality, an approach that has not only targeted individuals but has destroyed entire ecosystems of crime. This sustained effort has helped transform policing from a reactive force to a central instrument of governance and public messaging.” Former DGP Prashant Kumar says:From the rollout of anti-Romeo squads to the expansion of mission power, and from AI-powered crime tracking systems to fast-track prosecution strategies, the state has attempted sweeping changes in its policing architecture. According to officials, there is an emphasis on predictability, deterrence and visibility – ensuring that law enforcement instills fear in criminals and is trusted by citizens.
Senior officials at the DGP headquarters said that since 2017, no major communal riot or caste-based conflict has been witnessed in the state, a claim the government says is a key indicator of better law and order.Action on criminal networks and mafia:Official figures show that 277 criminals were killed in police encounters, while more than 11,445 were injured. At least 33,652 rewarded criminals were arrested.Over 85,118 criminals were booked under the Gangster Act and 977 under the National Security Act (NSA). Illegal movable and immovable assets worth more than Rs 14,580 crore were seized under the Gangster Act between March 2017 and December 2025. A focused operation against 68 identified mafia networks resulted in action against 1,459 people, with 638 arrests under provisions of the NSA and Gangster Act. Assets worth more than Rs 4,413 crore linked to these networks were seized.Conviction and sentencing results:Through focused legal follow-up, the government claims to have ensured life imprisonment to 35 mafias and 94 of their associates, while two have been awarded death sentence. Under ‘Operation Conviction’ (July 2023-December 2025), 1.25 lakh accused were convicted while 79 were given death sentence. At least 10,414 received life imprisonment.Decline in crime rate: Compared to 2016, the government has recorded a significant decline in major crime categories like dacoity (90% decline), dacoity (85% decline), murder (47% decline), rioting (70% decline) and rape (53% decline), a senior official at the DGP headquarters said.Emergency Response and Smart Policing: UP-112 emergency response system has been extensively upgraded and more than 3.1 crore calls were attended. Response time reduced from 1 hour 5 minutes (2016) to 6 minutes 41 seconds (2025). A cyber helpline integrated into UP-112 has processed more than 7.5 lakh complaints since its launch in May 2021. Police intervened in 1,769 cases of social media posts related to suicide between 2023 and 2025.Expansion of police infrastructure: The state expanded policing infrastructure with 134 new police stations and 86 outposts. At least 73 cyber crime police stations and six narcotics police stations were also set up.Women Safety and Mission Shakti: Under the Mission Shakti initiative, dedicated Mission Shakti centers were set up in each police station. More than 40,000 personnel were trained and women beat officers were deployed.Former UP DGP Vikram Singh said, “The nine years of the Yogi government mark a decisive and pioneering success in crime control and maintaining law and order. The state has acted vigorously against the mafia, dreaded criminals and organized crime, effectively breaking their backbone.”