A landmark verdict has reinterpreted the POCSO Act so as to provide a stronger legal structure to curb child porn and proposed a new term for this offence to differentiate from adult pornography
The Supreme Court recently agreed to examine a plea challenging the judgment of the Madras High Court related to downloading and watching child pornographic content privately. The High Court had ruled that this does not constitute an offence under the POCSO Act. However, the top court termed the ruling “atrocious”
The case of the prosecution is that on June 27, 2020, at 17.38:51 hours, the petitioner browsed, downloaded, and transmitted child pornographic material by using his Sim through his e-mail and Facebook account.
The Delhi High Court while hearing a case related to child pornography has directed the police agencies to forward sexually explicit material relating to the petitioner to the National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) to identify the persons who are re-uploading the offensive content in India.
The changes made in the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012, by the centre have finally led to a proper definition of child pornography. According to the Ministry of Women and Child Development, child pornography is defined as “any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct