Nityanand Rai, the Minister of State for Home Affairs today said in the Rajya Sabha that State governments have the first role in curbing incidents of mob lynching.

On being asked if incidents of mob lynching have increased in the last 6 months, Rai said, "'Police' and 'Public Order' are State subjects under the seventh schedule of the constitution. State Governments are responsible for prevention, detection and investigation of crimes and for prosecuting the criminals through their law enforcement agencies."

He added that the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) does not maintain specific data with respect to lynching incidents.

In recent weeks, a couple of mob lynchings have been reported fro different parts of the country. The lynching of Tabrez Ansari in Jharkhand has occupied much media space.