Court clarifies on ban on gutkha, pan masala

A Division Bench of the Kerala High Court, on Wednesday, clarified that the intention of a recent order of the Food Safety Department was to prohibit production, distribution, and sale of gutkha and pan masala that had tobacco and nicotine as ingredients. The Bench comprising Chief Justice Manjula Chellur and Justice A.M. Shaffique issued the clarification while disposing of an appeal filed by a manufacturer challenging a single judge’s order refusing to stay the Food Safety Commissioner’s order banning the sale of pan masala and gutkha.Though the petitioner had challenged the single judge’s order, when the appeal was taken up counsel for the manufacturer submitted that a subsequent order issued by the Food Safety Commissioner on the implementation of the ban order was ambiguous. The counsel pointed out that the order did not have the words such as tobacco and nicotine. The order only said that pan masala and gutkha had been banned. The counsel said the ambiguity in the order should be removed as otherwise it would lead to disastrous consequences and create impediments and restriction on the sale of any article which did not have nicotine and tobacco ingredients.The Bench said it was very clear that the intention was to prohibit gutkha and pan masala that contained tobacco and nicotine and similar foods containing such ingredients, since such products were used widely in the State.Declining a stay order, the single judge prima facie had held that the notification was not illegal or invalid.

Source:http://www.thehindu.com