A puff of controversy: PIL in Kerala High Court over Arundhati Roy's smoking photo on cover of her new book

The Kerala High Court on Thursday sought the Union government's response to a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) petition that seeks prohibition on writer Arundhati Roy's latest book 'Mother Mary Comes to Me' for its cover, which shows her smoking a cigarette without the mandatory health warning [Rajasimhan v Union of India].The case was heard by a Division Bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji..The PIL was filed by advocate Rajasimhan contending that the image of the author smoking a cigarette glorifies it as a symbol of intellectual and creative expression. Rajasimhan clarified that he was not challenging the contents or the literary substance of the book.According to the plea, the book is accessible to all and has the potential to send a misleading message to the impressionable youth, particularly teenage girls and women that smoking is fashionable."The said depiction amounts to advertisement of the book and indirect advertisement and promotion of smoking and tobacco products, particularly since Ms.Arundhati Roy is a globally renowned public intellectual, and her actions exert a strong influence over youth and the reading public, particularly the teenage girls and womenfolk who are still keeping aloof in the Indian society from openly and publicly displaying smoking and drinking habits," the petitioner contended.As per the petition, such depiction is violative of the provisions of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003’ (COTPA) and the 2008 Rules.Section 7 and Section 8 of the COTPA mandates statuary health warnings such as 'Smoking is injurious to health' or 'Tobacco causes cancer' on any depiction of smoking. The book cover fails to carry such warnings, amounting to indirect advertisement of tobacco products expressly prohibited by law, as per the petitioner..He thus prayed for directions to restrain the author and the publisher from further circulating or selling the book with the alleged cover picture. He further urged the Court to order the Union government, Press Council of India and the State government to ensure compliance with COPTA, including re-publication of the book cover with appropriate public health warnings. .Senior Counsel S Gopakumaran Nair appeared for the petitioner.