The Kerala High Court on Monday dismissed a plea seeking a ban on Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy's latest book, 'Mother Mary Come to Me', with a cover image of the author smoking. The High Court dismissed the Public Interest Litigation (PIL), noting it should not be used for personal publicity or slander.
Hearing the matter on Monday, A division bench comprising Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji dismissed the PIL moved by Kochi-based lawyer Rajsimhan seeking to prohibit the sale of the book. The petitioner argued that the book's cover photo, an image showing the author smoking, "glorified" the act of smoking and it sends out a "damaging message" to society.
The petitioner also argued that the image violated statutory norms, and the image was carried sans any health warnings.
The petitioner claimed that the cover image of the book "Mother Mary Comes to Me" violated statutory norms as it showed the author smoking without the mandated health warning label. "Glorification of smoking by an eminent author like her amounts to creating a false belief that such acts enhance intellectual creativity," the petitioner said in the plea.
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The petitioner also argued that the publishers violated guidelines regarding the advertisement of tobacco products. However, the High Court dismissed the petitioner's charges after it noted that the publisher had carried a disclaimer.
Roy's lawyer informed the Court that the petition was filed without adequate research, and without verifying the publisher's disclaimer clarifying that the image was not intended to promote smoking. The Kerala court also noted that any violation of Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003 (COTPA), which deals with the prohibition of direct and indirect advertisement of tobacco products, must be determined by the competent authority under the Act, PTI reported. The court cautioned the petitioner and said PILs should not be used as a vehicle for self-publicity or personal slander.
