Watching and downloading child porn a crime under the POCSO Act: Supreme Court

New Delhi| The Supreme Court has heard a petition challenging the decision of the Madras High Court which had said that watching or downloading child pornography in private does not come under the purview of the POCSO Act.
The Supreme Court said that storing child-related obscene material is an offense under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offenses Act (POCSO Act).

The Supreme Court suggested to Parliament that it bring in a law amending the POCSO Act, replacing the term “child pornography” with “child sexual abuse and degrading material”. The Supreme Court said that till the implementation of the amendment, the Central Government can bring an ordinance in this regard. The Supreme Court directed all courts not to use the term “child pornography”.

In March this year, Chief Justice D.Y.A bench headed by Chandrachud had issued notice on a petition challenging the Madras High Court order which had said that downloading and possessing child pornography is not a crime. The Madras High Court in its judgment had quashed the FIR and criminal proceedings against the 28-year-old man from Chennai, saying that private viewing of child pornography did not fall within the purview of the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.

Justice N. Anand Venkatesh’s bench argued that the accused had only downloaded the material and personally viewed the pornography and it was neither published nor broadcast to others. “Since he has not used a child or children for pornographic purposes, this can only be interpreted as moral degradation on the part of the accused person”. Chennai Police seized the phone of the accused after finding that he had downloaded and kept child pornography with him then filed an FIR under Section 67 B of the Information Technology Act and Section 14 (1) of the POCSO Act. In India, under the POCSO Act 2012 and the IT Act 2000, among other laws, the manufacture, distribution and possession of child pornography are criminalized.