The Supreme Court of India made a landmark judgment on child pornography recently. According to the ruling, it was stressed that watching child pornography is a crime. The bench led by Chief Justice Dr. DY Chandrachud and Justice JB Pardiwala clarified that it is not merely the creation or distribution of such material which is illegal but watching or keeping it is also a criminal offence. It comes under the Section 15 of the POCSO Act and Section 67B of the IT Act.
The judgment redesignates child pornography as “Child Sexual Exploitative and Abuse Material” (CSEAM), pointing out the severity of this offense. Watching child pornography is a crime and a serious offence, and the verdict by the court is trying to bring society to comprehend the results of how this exploitative material could ravage children’s lives.
Watching child pornography is a crime and should be dealt with seriousness, says the Supreme Court of India
The word “pornography” inherently describes consensual adult activity. Whereas this label gives children what amounts to hideous abuse and exploitation, taking away from the seriousness of it. The new terminology given by the Court, CSEAM, better explains the actual crime. The Supreme Court focused on the point that viewing child pornography is a serious crime. Hence, it should be dealt with that seriousness.
According to the court:
“Child sexual exploitation is one of the most heinous crimes imaginable. The offence of Child Pornography is equally as heinous, if not more.”
Highlighting different articles and their sections, the court suggested overall sex education to debunk myths. Also, educate people about consent, respect, and proper relationships to avoid destructive behaviours like the distribution or viewing of CSEAM. Apprising them on the legal implications of actually viewing such material makes young people less likely to engage in such exploitative behaviours.
You can read the court’s ruling and important suggestions here.
Child sexual exploitation must be reported on social media
The judgment further highlighted that all social media platforms and intermediaries should report the child sexual exploitation material with which they come across. This act of merely removing the content does not discharge such legal obligation to these social media platforms. Social media intermediaries commit a crime by watching child pornography.
Therefore, they also need to take proactive steps to ensure compliance with laws like POCSO. Reporting such materials to the authorities is crucial to stopping this heinous crime. Furthermore, one of the suggestions to the Union of India was that:
“The term “child pornography” shall not be used in any judicial order or judgment, and instead the term “child sexual exploitative and abuse material” (CSEAM) should be endorsed.”
It can be said in a nutshell that the Supreme Court Judgment reiterated the fact that watching child pornography is a crime. It should be treated as a crime by the public at large. The judgement clearly gave ways how such crimes can be dealt with, and terms, awareness, and preventive legal steps came to the fore. The issue would then start to take extreme turns in the country through legislative reforms and social awareness along with heavy hands of law.
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