DW BUREAU / Chandigarh

Punjab Police's Cyber Crime Division has arrested one person and identified 54 suspects involved in viewing, transmitting and distributing child sexual abuse material (CSAM) using various online platforms, said Director General of Police (DGP) Gaurav Yadav on Thursday.

The development came close on the heels of the apex court, in a landmark verdict recently, held that watching and downloading child pornography are offences under the POCSO Act and the Information Technology Act. CSAM refers to any content depicting or exploiting minors in a sexual manner, including photos, videos, or media, which is illegal to produce, distribute, or possess, causing long-lasting harm to victims and considered a severe form of child exploitation due to the lasting impact it has on victims, a Punjab Police statement said here.

The arrested accused has been identified as Vijaypal, a resident of Ramsra in Fazilka. Police teams have also seized electronic devices following standard procedures, with proper hash values recorded.

An FIR has been registered under Section 67B of the IT Act at the Cyber police station in this regard, the DGP said. Yadav said that following the Cyber Tiplines (centralized reporting system for the online exploitation of children) regarding transmission of CSAM content received from the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA), the State Cyber Crime Division in coordination with the police commissioners and senior superintendents of police, launched a special operation to apprehend individuals involved in viewing, transmitting, and distributing such content.

He said that in the first phase of the operation, as many as 54 suspects have been identified across Punjab, while, one person found selling and sharing CSAM using Instagram and Telegram has been arrested from Fazilka. The DGP said police teams have seized 39 devices from different suspects during the operation and are being sent for forensic analysis. Further, investigations are underway to identify and apprehend more offenders involved in such heinous crimes, he added.

Additional DGP, Cybercrime, V Neeraja said the operation, which was meticulously coordinated by SP Cybercrime Jashandeep Gill, is part of Punjab's efforts to combat online child abuse. The operation is still ongoing and more arrests are expected in coming days, she added.

She said that under the current law, viewing, distributing, or storing CSAM is a criminal offence under 67(B) IT Act, 2000 read with section 15 of the POCSO Act and is punishable with up to five years of imprisonment and a fine of up to Rs 10 lakh.

Punjab Police has cybercrime police stations in all 28 districts and commissionerates, which are equipped with cyber investigation and technical support units to investigate cybercrimes.

For further assistance or to report CSAM, people can contact the State Cyber Crime Division or local district Cybercrime police station, the statement said.
(editor@dailyworld.in)