New Delhi: “Watching pornography involving children in private will not be covered by the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences POCSO Act”. The Supreme Court quashed a Madras High Court judgment on Monday.
Replace the term “child pornography”
The judgement, authored by Justice J.B. Pardiwala, advised that Parliament carefully consider replacing the word “child pornography” with “child sexual exploitative and abuse material” (CSEAM) and that the Union government may issue an ordinance to amend the POCSO.
Furthermore, the Supreme Court directed all courts across the country to avoid using the phrase “child pornography” in any judicial decision or judgement, instead using the term “child sexual exploitative and abuse material (CSEAM).”
In its decision, the Supreme Court stated that the offence under Section 15 of the POCSO is in the nature and form of an inchoate offence, punishing the mere storage or possession of any pornographic material involving a child when done with a specific intent prescribed thereunder, without requiring any actual transmission, dissemination, etc.
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In March of this year, the CJI D.Y. Chandrachud-led Bench issued a notice on the petition challenging the Madras High Court ruling that stated that downloading and possessing child pornography does not constitute an offence.
In the impugned judgement, the Madras High Court overturned the FIR and criminal proceedings against a 28-year-old Chennai man, ruling that accessing child pornography in private was not covered by the POCSO Act.
A bench led by Justice N. Anand Venkatesh reasoned that the accused had just downloaded the material and watched the pornography in private with no intent to distribute or transfer it to others.
“Since he has not used a child or children for pornographic purposes, at best, it can only be construed as a moral decay on the part of the accused person,” it said.
The Chennai police filed a FIR under Sections 67B of the Information Technology Act and Section 14(1) of the POCSO Act after seizing the accused’s phone and discovering that he had downloaded and possessed child pornography.
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–IANS
