SC seeks T.N. govt.’s response to HC order on child porn

SC seeks T.N. govt.’s response to HC order on child porn

Subject: Polity

Section: Legislation in news

Context:

• The Supreme Court has sought a response from the Tamil Nadu government to a petition filed by Just Rights for Children Alliance, an NGO coalition, challenging a Madras High Court order that mere downloading and private viewing of child pornography was not an offense.

More on news:

• A Bench, headed by Chief Justice of India D.Y. Chandrachud, issued a notice to the State on the basis of a plea against the High Court quashing the FIR and criminal proceedings against a 28-year-old man.
• There was a glaring increase in child pornography cases in the country – from 44 cases in 2018 to 1,171 cases in 2022 – as per National Crime Records Bureau data.

Madras High Court Verdict:

• The High Court had quashed the judicial proceedings against the man and held that downloading child pornography was not an offense under Section 67B of the Information Technology (IT) Act, 2000.
• The High Court had categorically said that watching child pornography per se was not an offense as the accused had merely downloaded it on his electronic gadget and watched it in private.

About Child Pornography:

• Under theThe Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Amendment) Act,2019 a person is guilty of using a child for pornographic purposes if he uses a child in any form of media for the purpose of sexual gratification.
• The Act also penalises persons who use children for pornographic purposes resulting in sexual assault.  The Bill defines child pornography as any visual depiction of sexually explicit conduct involving a child including photograph, video, digital or computer generated image indistinguishable from an actual child.
• The Act penalizes storage of pornographic material for commercial purposes with a punishment of up to three years, or a fine, or both.  
• The Bill amends this to provide that the punishment can be imprisonment between three to five years, or a fine, or both.
• In addition, the Bill adds two other offenses for storage of pornographic material involving children.
• These include:
  • (i) failing to destroy, or delete, or report pornographic material involving a child 
  • (ii) transmitting, displaying, distributing such material except for the purpose of reporting it.