LEGAL ISSUES CONCERNING PORNOGRAPHY IN INDIA
Ever since the government banned a few pornography sites, a heated debate immediately started on the topic of censorship and banning of pornography- some of us supporting the ban and others opposing.
Admittedly, this is a matter of individual choice, to like or not like porn.
But a bigger question needs to be addressed.
Is watching any content in the privacy of my home a part of my ‘Right of privacy’?
Is watching, distributing, publishing, broadcasting porn a State issue or not?
Is Pornography-legal in India, or not?
The word ‘pornography’ has wide ramifications.
It means any portrayal of sexual subject matters for stimulation. So, sex education is NOT pornography.
It may be present in various medias such as books, magazines, photography, postcards, sound recording, film, videos or even video games.
First, let’s be very clear- Pornography per-se is Not Illegal in India.
Viewing cyber pornography is Not illegal in India, and its mere download does not amount to any offence.
Also, possession of such pornographic content is Not illegal.
But here comes the slippery road!
Publication of such pornographic content is Illegal.
Transmission of such pornographic content through any electronic medium is Illegal.
Do you get the bottom line?
Do whatever, watch whatever, but Only in the privacy of your house.
What does the Law say?
The Indian Penal Code (IPC)-Section 292 deals with any act for the purpose of selling, hiring or publishing, distributing any books, pamphlets, paper, writing, drawing or painting of any object, shall be deemed to be obscene…………if it is lascivious etc.
You shall be liable for a punishment for a period of two years along with a fine or both.
Similarly, Section 354A of the same code also provides certain liabilities to a person who exhibits pornographic content to any women against her will.The offender is liable to an imprisonment of 5 years with fine.
What about Pornography websites?
It is not legal to host a porn site on the hosting servers that are located in India.
Even though, viewing pornography is completely legal in India – distribution or sale of pornographic material is a criminal offence and can land you in trouble.
As ‘hosting’ a porn site comes under distribution, it is illegal to do so.
Section 67 of the Information Technology Act-2000 states that any publication, transmission of any information which contains pornographic or obscene contents will be punishable with up to 3 years’ imprisonment and a fine of Rs. Five Lakh.
However, you can host a porn site, with those dedicated servers that are allowing you to host adult stuff (porn data) and are located outside India.
Legislative Wisdom?
Our lawmakers and the Courts in their wisdom have looked at pornography as a social problem.It has been observed that even when pornography is viewed in private, often leads to deception in marriage and which may, later on, affect family life.
It may lead to adultery, prostitution and many unreal expectations that can result in dangerous promiscuous behaviour.
Conclusion:
Law is always multi-layered and multi-dimensional. Even a seemingly trivial issue of what you can and cannot watch on T.V., has to be measured on the scale of legal propriety and wisdom.
Adv.Sidharth Jaisingh Arora
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PS- pic for representational purpose only