Supreme Court Rules Downloading, Watching Child Pornography an Offense Under POCSO Act, IT Law

Sep 23, 2024, 06:04 AM

The Supreme Court of India has ruled that downloading, storing, and watching child pornography is an offense under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act and the Information Technology (IT) law. This decision overturns a previous judgment by the Madras High Court, which had held that mere downloading and private viewing of child pornography were not offenses. A three-judge Bench headed by Chief Justice of India DY Chandrachud suggested that Parliament amend the POCSO Act to replace the term 'child pornography' with 'child sexually exploitative and abusive material.' The court laid down guidelines and legal consequences for such offenses and emphasized that the term 'child pornography' should not be used in any judicial order or judgment.