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Kochi, Oct 13 (IANS) The Kerala High Court on Monday dismissed a public interest litigation (PIL) challenging the cover of author Arundhati Roy’s new book ‘Mother Mary Comes to Me’, in which she is allegedly shown smoking a cigarette without the mandatory health warning under the law.
A division bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji initially said that the petitioner, advocate Rajasimhan, failed to disclose that a disclaimer on smoking appears on the back cover of the book.
The bench held that the issue falls squarely within the jurisdiction of the statutory authorities constituted under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA) and not the writ jurisdiction of the High Court.
“In view of the statutory scheme under the COTPA Act and the rules made thereunder, such cases are to be decided by expert bodies constituted under the Act after hearing the parties.”
Expressing reservations over the authenticity of the petition, the court said that the petitioner had refused to approach the competent authority despite being advised. It noted that the petition was filed without proper legal scrutiny or verification of relevant facts, including the presence of a disclaimer, and cautioned against misuse of PILs for publicity.
The petitioner had argued that the cover glorified smoking as a symbol of intellectualism and could influence impressionable youth, especially women.
He argued that the lack of statutory warning amounts to indirect advertising of tobacco products in violation of Sections 7 and 8 of COTPA, and sought directions to stop further dissemination of the book and mandate its re-publication with appropriate health warnings.
Dismissing the plea, the bench reiterated that such regulatory matters fall within the ambit of the statutory machinery and cannot be decided through PIL.
–IANS
SG/VD