Downloading, watching child pornography offence under POCSO, IT law: SC

In a landmark verdict the Supreme Court on Monday held that watching and downloading child pornography are offences under the POCSO Act and the information technology law reported news agency PTIThe apex court suggested Parliament consider amending the term child pornography with child sexually abusive and exploitative material by bringing changes in law and asked the courts not to use the term child pornography reported PTIA bench headed by Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud set aside the Madras High Court ruling that had said mere downloading and watching child pornography was not an offence under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences POCSO Act and Information Technology IT Act reported PTIThe bench also comprising Justices J B Pardiwala and Manoj Misra also laid down certain guidelines on child pornography and its legal consequencesWe have said about lingering impact of child pornography on victimisation and abuse of children and on role to report an offence including role of society and stakeholders the bench said reported PTIWe have suggested to Parliament to bring an amendment to POCSO so that definition of child pornography can be referred to as child sexually abusive and exploitative material We have suggested an Ordinance can be brought in it said reported PTIThe top court delivered its verdict on a plea challenging the Madras High Court orderOn January 11 the high court had quashed the criminal proceedings against a 28yearold man charged with downloading pornographic content involving children on his mobile phoneWhile pronouncing the verdict the apex court restored the criminal proceedings in the case saying the high court had erred in quashing it The bench said the sessions court will now deal with the case afresh reported PTITerming the high court ruling atrocious the apex court had earlier agreed to hear the plea challenging the high court ruling that had said mere downloading and watching child pornography was not an offence under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences POCSO Act and Information Technology IT Act reported PTIThe high court had also said that children these days were grappling with the serious issue of watching pornography and instead of punishing them the society must be mature enough to educate them reported PTIThe Supreme Court had taken note of the submissions made in the matter by senior advocate H S Phoolka who represented two petitioner organisations that the high court verdict was contrary to the laws in this regardThe senior lawyer appeared in the court on behalf of NGOs Just Rights for Children Alliance based in Faridabad and the New Delhibased Bachpan Bachao Andolan The organisations work for the welfare of children reported PTIThe high court had quashed the criminal case against S Harish under the POCSO Act 2012 and IT Act 2000In order to constitute an offence under section 67B of the IT Act an accused must have published transmitted or created material depicting children in a sexuallyexplicit act or conduct it had said reported PTIA careful reading of this provision does not make watching child pornography per se an offence under section 67B of the Information Technology Act 2000 the high court had added reported PTIEven though the said section of the IT Act has been widely worded it does not cover a case where a person has merely downloaded child pornography in an electronic gadget and watched the same without doing anything more it had said reported PTIAdmittedly two videos involving boys were downloaded and were available on the petitioners mobile phone and those were neither published nor transmitted to others and were within the petitioners private domain it had saidThe Madras High Court had however expressed concern over children watching pornographyViewing pornography can have negative consequences on teenagers down the line affecting both their psychological and physical wellbeing it had said reported PTIThe high court had advised the petitioner to attend counselling if he was still afflicted with the addiction of watching pornographyWith inputs from PTI