The Supreme Court has declared both viewing and downloading child pornography as a crime. The Supreme Court said that both viewing and downloading child pornography will fall under the category of crime under the POCSO Act. Earlier, the Madras High Court had decided that viewing or downloading child pornography in private will not come under the purview of the POCSO Act.
On Monday, the Supreme Court, while hearing a petition challenging the Madras High Court’s decision, has decided to put both viewing and downloading child pornography in the category of crime.
The Supreme Court, overturning the Madras High Court’s decision that viewing or downloading child pornography in private will not come under the purview of the POCSO Act, suggested the Central Government to replace the term “child pornography” with “child sexual exploitation and abuse material”.
Let us tell you that a bench headed by Chief Justice D.Y. Chandrachud had issued a notice in March this year on a petition challenging the Madras High Court’s order that downloading and possessing child pornography is not a crime.
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The Madras High Court had acquitted a 28-year-old Chennai man, holding that private viewing of child pornography does not fall under the purview of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
A bench of Justice N Anand Venkatesh reasoned that the accused had only downloaded the content and viewed the pornography privately. It was neither published nor circulated by the accused to others. He has not used any child or children for pornographic purposes, so it cannot be construed as moral turpitude on the part of the accused.
The accused’s phone was seized by the Chennai police and it was found that he had downloaded child porn videos. An FIR was registered against the accused under Section 67B of the Information Technology Act and Section 14(1) of the POCSO Act.
In India, the manufacture, distribution and possession of child pornography has been declared a crime under the POCSO Act 2012 and the IT Act 2000, among other laws.
