Key Points at a Glance

The Protection of Children from Sexual Offences Act 2012 (POCSO) was enacted to address child sexual abuse comprehensively — the first dedicated Indian legislation for all forms of sexual offences against persons below 18 years of age; it received Presidential assent on 19 June 2012 and came into force on 14 November 2012 (Children's Day).

"Child" under Section 2(d) means any person below the age of 18 years — the Act is gender-neutral for victims (applies to boys, girls, and transgender children) but the Act primarily uses feminine pronouns in drafting; offenders can be male or female.

"Penetrative sexual assault" (Section 3) — the most serious offence — means penetration of penis, any object, or any part of the body of child; OR making the child to do so; punishable under Section 4 with minimum 10 years rigorous imprisonment (extendable to life imprisonment or death).

"Aggravated penetrative sexual assault" (Section 5) covers penetrative assault committed by persons in positions of trust or authority — police officers, armed forces, public servants, management of educational/medical institutions, relatives, persons with children in their custody — or when causing grievous hurt, pregnancy, HIV, repeated assault, or assault on mentally disabled child; punishable with minimum 20 years (Section 6) which may extend to life imprisonment or death.

"Sexual assault" (Section 7) means touching a child with sexual intent — any body part — without penetration; OR any act with sexual intent; punishable under Section 8 with minimum 3 years up to 5 years imprisonment; "aggravated sexual assault" (Section 9/10) by persons of authority carries 5–7 years minimum.

"Sexual harassment" (Section 11) covers a wider range of non-contact offences — making sexual comments; showing pornography; performing sex act in front of a child; inducing a child to expose body parts; following, watching, or contacting using electronic means with sexual intent; punishable under Section 12 with up to 3 years imprisonment plus fine.

"Using child for pornographic purposes" (Section 13) — any person who uses a child for pornographic purposes (filming, watching, producing, distributing child sexual abuse material) is punishable under Section 14 — minimum 5 years imprisonment; Section 15 penalises storage of child pornographic material with 3 years or fine or both.

The Act creates a presumption of guilt (Section 29) — when a person is prosecuted for sexual offences against a child, the Special Court shall presume that the person committed the offence; the accused must prove innocence (reversal of burden of proof — departure from ordinary criminal law where prosecution must prove guilt beyond reasonable doubt).

Special Courts (Section 28) are designated by State Governments for trial of POCSO cases — with a child-friendly environment: in-camera trials (Section 37), exclusion of press, provision of an interpreter/special educator, and child's statement recorded by Magistrate at child's home or neutral place (Section 26).

Mandatory reporting (Section 19): Any person who has apprehension that a sexual offence is likely to be committed against a child, or has knowledge that such offence has been committed, must report it to the Special Juvenile Police Unit or local police — failure to report is punishable with 6 months imprisonment or fine or both (Section 21).

Punishment for false complaint (Section 22): If a person makes a false complaint against a child under the Act or provides false information with the intent to humiliate, extort, or threaten any person — punishable with 6 months imprisonment or fine. A minor making a false complaint cannot be punished — protection of children from being weaponised.

2019 Amendment to POCSO: The Act was amended in 2019 to enhance penalties — death penalty added for aggravated penetrative sexual assault where victim is below 16 years; minimum sentences for penetrative sexual assault on a child below 16 increased from 10 to 20 years; punishment for use of children in pornography enhanced.