The Supreme Court on Monday declined to entertain a public interest litigation seeking the formulation of a national policy and legal framework to regulate access to pornographic content, particularly by minors, holding that the issue primarily fell within the executive’s policy domain and required technological expertise rather than judicial intervention.
The Bench of Chief Justice of India (CJI) Surya Kant, Justice Joymalya Bagchi and Justice V Mohana observed that the concerns raised in the petition were of paramount public importance. However, it held that the matter did not involve a question of law requiring adjudication under its writ jurisdiction and instead called for policy decisions based on expert inputs and technological advancements.
The Apex Court disposed of the PIL without expressing any opinion on its merits, observing that such matters ordinarily fell within the domain of the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) and the Ministry of Information and Broadcasting (MIB). The Court granted liberty to the petitioner to submit the plea as a representation before the competent authorities and directed them to give due consideration to the issues and suggestions raised.
The petition, filed by BL Jain under Article 32 of the Constitution through Advocate Varun Thakur, sought directions to the Union government to formulate a comprehensive national policy and an action plan to curb the viewing of pornography, particularly by persons below the age of majority, and to prohibit the viewing of pornographic material in public places.
The petitioner argued that explicit content was now available across digital platforms with minimal restrictions, making it easily accessible to children and adolescents. It was submitted that excessive exposure to such material resulted in addiction, psychological harm and an increase in sexual offences, particularly crimes against women.
The plea asserted that while the Information Technology Act, 2000 criminalised the publication, transmission and distribution of obscene and pornographic material, it did not penalise the act of viewing such content, thereby creating a legislative gap.
The petition also relied on Section 69A of the Information Technology Act, which empowered the Central government to block public access to online content in specified circumstances. It was contended that despite possessing such statutory powers, the government had not evolved an effective legal or regulatory mechanism to restrict access to pornographic material, especially by minors.
Referring to international practices, the petitioner submitted that several countries have introduced legal safeguards to prevent children from accessing online pornography through age-verification mechanisms and other regulatory measures. It was further argued that India required a similar statutory framework to address the growing misuse of digital platforms and strengthen child protection measures.
The plea claimed that the widespread availability of pornography at the click of a button had become a serious social concern and highlighted data suggesting a significant increase in online pornographic content. It urged the Court to direct the Union government to frame a national policy and implement an effective regulatory framework to address the issue.
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