In a reply submitted to the National Assembly on Friday by Interior Minister Chaudhary Nisar Ali Khan, the interior ministry revealed that crimes against women had risen sharply in the federal capital.

Last year, Islamabad saw a 160 per cent increase in rape cases, according to documents provided by the interior ministry detailing the number of crimes committed in the federal capital.

15 cases of rape were reported in the federal capital in 2015, but the number jumped to 39 last year, the document said.

The ministry said the federal capital saw an increase of 10 per cent in such incidents during the course of one year.

However, in 2016, “there was a decrease in incidents of murder, kidnapping, theft, robbery and car snatching,” the interior ministry said.

While sharing details about the number of terrorists arrested in 2016, the interior ministry revealed that “around 1,554 terrorists" were arrested last year, of which 799 were nabbed from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa.

Nearly 418 terrorists were arrested from Punjab, the minister added.

Commenting on the number, PPP lawmaker Suraiya Jatoi pointed out that Punjab was ranked second in the number of terrorists arrested, while Sindh came third.

“We have been saying this all along: that Punjab hosts a large number of terrorists,” Jatoi said.

Replying to this, Parliamentary Secretary Afzal Dhandla said that despite the fact that no targetted operation was launched against terrorists in Punjab, more than four hundred miscreants had still been arrested.

“This goes to show the improved performance of the police in the province,” the secretary added.