RAJASIMHAN Vs. UNION OF INDIA

JUDGEMENT

(1.) The book authored by Respondent No.5 titled "Mother Mary Comes to Me", published by Respondent No.4, a publishing house, was released on 2/9/2025. According to the Petitioner, the image of the author on the cover of this Book, smoking a cigarette, is in contravention 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. The Petitioner seeks a direction to the Respondents - Union of India, Press Council of India, and State of Kerala, to prohibit the sale, circulation, and display of the Book, and to direct Respondent No.4 to withdraw all copies of the Book.

(2.) The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003 (Act of 2003), as reflected in its Statement of Objects, was enacted to prohibit the advertisement of, and to regulate the trade, commerce, production, supply, and distribution of cigarettes and other tobacco products. Sec. 3(a) of the Act of 2003 defines "advertisement" to include any visible representation by way of notice, circular, label, wrapper, or other document, and also encompasses any announcement made orally or by any means of producing or transmitting light, sound, smoke, or gas.

(3.) Sec. 5 of the Act of 2003, which is the primary provision prohibiting the advertisement of cigarettes and other tobacco products, reads as follows: