मुख्य समाचार
Strengthening of Protection of Children
from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012
For Mains:
Steps taken to tackle child sexual
exploitation and related challenges in India.
Why in news?
Recently, the Supreme Court has ruled
that viewing or possession of sexual material involving minors is illegal under
the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act, 2012. Whether
such material is further shared or transmitted or not, it is a punishable
offence under the POCSO Act, 2012.It overturned the earlier judgment of the Madras High
Court, which held that private viewing (without further transmission) of child
pornography will not be considered a crime.
What are the key points of the Supreme
Court judgment?
Redefining the terminology: The Supreme
Court (SC) has urged the Central Government to replace the term “child
pornography” with “child sexual exploitation and abuse material” (CSEAM).
This change is significant as the term
“pornography” often refers to consensual conduct between adults and may not
accurately represent abuse and exploitation.
Extension of Section 15 of
POCSO Act, 2012: The Supreme Court has clarified the term “storage of child pornography”
under Section 15
of the POCSO Act, 2012. Earlier, this provision mainly covered storage for
commercial purposes. The judicial interpretation of Section 15
includes three major offences.
Storage without reporting: A person who
stores or possesses child pornography must remove, destroy or report it to the
specified authority. Failure to do so may be punishable under Section 15(1).
Intent to transmit or distribute: A
person who possesses child pornography and intends to transmit or display it in
any manner except for the purpose of reporting may be punishable under Section 15(2).
Commercial storage: Storage of child
pornography for commercial purposes falls under Section 15(3),
which carries the most severe penalties.
Concept of unfinished offences: The
judgment categorised offences under Section 15 as
“unfinished” offences, meaning they are preparatory acts towards a further
offence.
Redefinition of possession: The Court
expanded the definition of “possession” in child pornography cases. It now
includes “constructive possession”, which refers to situations where a person
may not physically possess the material but has the ability to control it and
knowledge of that control.
For example, viewing child pornography
online without downloading it may also be considered illegal.
If a person receives a link to child
pornography but closes it without reporting it and if he does not inform the
authorities, he can be held liable even if he does not physically possess it
after closing the link.
Educational reforms: The Court urged the
government to promote comprehensive sexuality education in schools and society
to counter misconceptions that consider discussions about sexual health
inappropriate.
This education should include topics such
as consent, healthy relationships, gender equality and respect for diversity.
Awareness about the POCSO Act, 2012: Sections
43
and 44
of the POCSO Act, 2012 require the Central and State Governments as well as
the National Commission for Protection of Child Rights (NCPCR) to promote
widespread awareness about the Act.
Constitution of an Expert Committee: An
Expert Committee should be tasked with formulating a comprehensive programme
for health and sexual education and to raise awareness about the POCSO Act, 2012
among children.
Support and awareness to victims: The
judgment underlined the need for strong support systems for victims of CSEAM,
including psychological counselling, therapeutic interventions and educational
support.
Programs such as cognitive behavioral
therapy (CBT) can help overcome cognitive distortions that promote such
behavior among offenders.
Status of crimes against children
Booming market: India has the highest
number of child sexual abuse images online in the world, followed by Thailand,
according to the US-based National Center for Missing and Exploited Children
(NCMEC).
Geographical distribution: Delhi tops the
list of countries with maximum uploads of child porn, followed by Maharashtra,
Gujarat, Uttar Pradesh and West Bengal.
Rise in prevalence: According to the
National Crime Records Bureau (NCRB) report 2023, 781
cases of creation or storage of child porn were registered in the year 2018. In
the year 2022, 1,171 cases of dissemination of inappropriate content related to children
were reported.
POCSO Act
Introduction: This law aims to solve
crimes of sexual exploitation and sexual abuse of children. According to this
Act, any person below the age of 18 years is a child.
It was enacted in 1992 as
a result of India's ratification of the United Nations Convention on the Rights
of the Child.
Features:
Gender-neutral nature:
The Act recognises that both boys and
girls can be victims of sexual abuse and victims can be of any gender.
The Act recognises that both boys and
girls can be victims of sexual abuse and that such abuse is a crime
irrespective of the gender of the victim.
This is in consonance with the principle
that all children have the right to protection from sexual abuse and
exploitation and that laws should not discriminate on the basis of gender.
Confidentiality of Victim Identity:
According to Section 23 of the POCSO Act, 2012,
the identity of child victims should be kept confidential. Media reports should
not give any information revealing the identity of the victim including their
name, address and family details.
Mandatory Reporting of Child Abuse Cases:
Sections 19
to 22
mandate persons who have knowledge or reasonable suspicion of such offences to
report to the relevant authorities.
Flaws in Implementation of POCSO Act, 2012:
Lack of Support Persons: The major lacuna
in the implementation of POCSO Act, 2012 is the absence of “support persons” for the victims.
The Supreme Court found that in 96% of POCSO cases, victims do not receive the necessary
assistance during the legal process.
The support person can be a person or an
organization that works in the field of child rights or child protection.
Inadequate designation of POCSO courts:
POCSO courts have not been designated in all districts. By 2022,
only 408 POCSO courts were established in 28
states under the Fast Track Special Courts scheme.
Lack of Special Public Prosecutors: There
is a lack of special public prosecutors trained specifically to handle POCSO
cases.
Conclusion
Coordinated efforts among stakeholders,
including teachers, healthcare providers, and law enforcement, are important
for early intervention in child sexual abuse.
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