The Supreme Court on Friday dismissed a petition seeking a ban on the sale, circulation, and display of celebrated author Arundhati Roy’s book “Mother Mary Comes to Me” on the grounds that its cover portrays her smoking a bidi or cigarette, allegedly violating tobacco control laws.
A bench of Chief Justice Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi rejected the appeal filed by one Rajasimhan challenging the Kerala High Court’s order, which had already dismissed the PIL on similar grounds.
“She is a renowned author. She has not promoted such a thing. There is a warning in the book, and she is a prominent person as well. Why do such a thing for publicity? There is no hoarding in the city with the picture of the book. It is only for someone who purchases and reads the book. Her picture does not portray any promotion,” the CJI observed.
‘No Violation of Tobacco Act’
The bench held that neither the author nor the publisher, Penguin Hamish Hamilton, had violated Section 5 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003.
Section 5 explicitly prohibits:
- advertisement,
- promotion,
- sponsorship of cigarettes and tobacco products,
- direct or surrogate advertising,
- promotional displays in media or public spaces.
However, it allows health warnings on packages and limited displays at retail points.
“We see no reason to interfere with the High Court’s order,” the bench ruled.
Petitioner’s Argument Rejected
The petitioner’s counsel argued that Roy is shown smoking what could be a “ganja bidi” or a normal bidi, and that the book carries only a small disclaimer instead of a prominent health warning.
Rejecting the contention, the CJI said:
“The book, publisher or author has nothing to do with advertising cigarettes. This is not an advertisement. You may disagree with the views of the author, but that does not mean such a case can lie.”
The book is a memoir authored by Arundhati Roy
