Arrests part of larger CBI probe into sale of child pornography. (Representational)
Two men have been arrested in Delhi for the alleged sale and purchase child pornography using e-commerce applications and their circulation through multiple social media platforms, including Instagram.
Accused Neeraj Kumar Yadav and Kuljeet Singh Makan had been buying, advertising and selling child pornography to a large network since 2019, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) said after arresting the two.
They allegedly bought a large volume of sexually explicit data depicting minors from a third person, routed the money through e-commerce platform Paytm, and stored this material on cloud-based websites.
The accused allegedly advertised this pornographic material on Instagram, and made solicitations for its sale.
Yadav and Makan would share the pornographic material through WhatsApp, Telegram, Instagram and other social media platforms after receiving payments through Paytm and Google Pay, the CBI said.
The arrests are part of a larger investigation by the Central Bureau of Investigation into sale of sexually abusive material depicting children on social media platforms.
A case has been filed against Neeraj Kumar Yadav and Kuljeet Singh Makan under relevant sections of the IT Act and the Protection of Children from Sexual Offences (POCSO) Act.
They have been remanded to judicial custody till January 22.