Child sexual abuse material online: Supreme Court gives Centre last chance to act

“Unfortunately, till this date, no such counter or report has come on record. The matter before us is extremely serious. We give one last opportunity to both the ministries to file their counter/report,” the bench said.

“The counter/report should explain clearly what steps the two ministries have taken to give meaningful effect to the directions issued by this court in the main judgment dated 23.09.2024…and what steps have been taken so far to curb this menace…”, the Supreme Court said.

It asked the government to “also indicate in so many words, what precautions the government would be taking in future to prevent lapses on the part of the social media intermediaries.”

The court was hearing a petition filed by a coalition of NGOs working against child trafficking, sexual exploitation, and other allied causes.

Two years since judgment

During the hearing, the counsel for the petitioner told the bench that two years had passed since the judgment but its directions had not been complied with. The Centre said that it would file an affidavit setting out an action-taken report. It added that a standard operating procedure (SOP) was in the process of being prepared and would be placed on record after being finalised.

By its September 2024 judgment, the Supreme Court had set aside a Madras High Court order which said that merely storing child pornographic material without any intention to transmit it would not constitute an offence under the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (Pocso) Act. It held that viewing, distributing or displaying any child pornographic material without actually possessing or storing it in any device or in any form or manner, would still tantamount to ‘possession’ in terms of Section 15 of the Pocso Act.

Among others, the Supreme Court judgment also called on Parliament to consider bringing about an amendment to the Pocso Act so as to substitute the term “child pornography” with CSEAM so as to reflect “more accurately on the reality of such offences”.

It also suggested implementing comprehensive sex education programmes that include information about the legal and ethical ramifications of child pornography that can help deter potential offenders, provide support services to the victims and rehabilitation programs for the offenders, raising awareness about the realities of child sexual exploitative material and its consequences through public campaigns.

The Supreme Court asked the government to consider constituting an expert committee to devise a comprehensive programme or mechanism for health and sex education, as well as raising awareness about the Pocso Act among children across the country from an early age, for ensuring a robust and well-informed approach to child protection, education, and sexual well-being.