Maharashtra: Spike in child porn consumption amid lockdown; 133 cases registered & 46 arrested under Sec 292

The cybercrime department of the Maharashtra police has registered 133 cases and arrested 46 people under IPC Section 292 (prurient creation of lascivious images), Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POSCO) Act and the IT Act during the lockdown. 

Spike in child porn consumption during the lockdown period shows the huge presence of pedophiles, child rapists, and child pornography addicts online. We're taking urgent steps to tighten stringency to prevent a drastic rise in sexual crimes against children," said Maharashtra Home Minister Anil Deshmukh.

According to the India Child Protection Fund (ICPF), there has been a steep increase in demand for searches like “child porn”, “sexy child” and “teen sex videos”, along with an increase in traffic on Pornhub from India by 95 percent between March 24 and 26, 2020, as compared to before the lockdown.