Watching pornographic photos or videos in private on a mobile phone does not attract the offence of obscenity under Section 292 of the Indian Penal Code, the Kerala high court has ruled.
The high court made the ruling on September 5 while considering a plea by a man who was arrested in July 2016 near Aluva municipality by police for watching obscene videos on his mobile phone while standing by the side of a road. The accused petitioned the court to quash criminal proceedings initiated against him under section 292.
“The question to be decided in this case is whether a person watching a porn video in his private time without exhibiting it to others amounts to an offence? A court of law cannot declare that the same amounts to an offence for the simple reason that it is his private choice and interference with the same amounts to an intrusion of his privacy,” the order by justice PV Kunhikrishnan said.
Citing case details, the court said the prosecution does not allege that the petitioner publicly exhibited the video.
{{/usCountry}}Citing case details, the court said the prosecution does not allege that the petitioner publicly exhibited the video.
{{/usCountry}}“I am of the considered opinion that watching of an obscene photo by a person in his privacy by itself is not an offence under section 292 IPC. Similarly, watching of an obscene video by a person from a mobile phone in his privacy is also not an offence under section 292 IPC,” the judge ruled. “If the accused is trying to circulate or distribute or publicly exhibits any obscene videos or photos, then alone the offence under section 292 IPC is attracted.”
The court dismissed criminal proceedings against the accused. The judge, however, warned parents on giving mobile phones with internet access to children without supervision.