Although they share a legal status equal to that of males, females in India are by no means socially and economically equal, nor do they exhibit official and self-reported crime rates anywhere near those of males. A gender gap in arrests shows an overall male-female ratio of approximately 20:1. While commonly found in other Third World countries, this ratio is about four times greater than occurs in economically developed countries. Self-report data narrows this gender gap considerably. A lack of basic data prevents explanation of female crime in India, but there is reason to believe that theoretical concepts of etiology developed in Western criminology may also apply to India. The relatively small offense rates for Indian females may reflect how their suppressed social position inhibits their ability to initiate or engage in criminal conduct. The article suggests that future research include analysis of how crime statistics are compiled, in-depth investigation of the actual criminal behavior of Indian females, and examination of the consequences of socioeconomic changes on all aspects of crime and justice. Tables, note, references