The petitioner had demanded a ban on its sale, alleging violation of labelling norms under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA).
Published Oct 13, 2025 | 3:32 PM ⚊ Updated Oct 13, 2025 | 3:32 PM
A poster of the book 'Mother Mary Comes To Me'. (Supplied)
Synopsis: A Division Bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji held that determining any breach of Section 5 of the Act required statutory interpretation and factual assessment, which falls under the purview of the COTPA Steering Committee.
The Kerala High Court on Monday, 13 October, dismissed a PIL seeking action against Arundhati Roy’s book Mother Mary Comes To Me for displaying a photo of the author smoking on its cover.
The petitioner had demanded a ban on its sale, alleging violation of labelling norms under the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA).
A Division Bench of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji held that determining any breach of Section 5 of the Act required statutory interpretation and factual assessment, which falls under the purview of the COTPA Steering Committee.
According to Bar and Bench, the court also expressed reservations about whether the plea was filed in public or publicity interest.
“The petitioner, despite making him aware, has refused to take up the issue before the statutory authority, filed a petition without examining g relevant legal position, without verifying the necessary material, including the presence of disclaimer on the book, has sought to invoke the extraordinary jurisdiction of this court under the guise of public interest. In light of these circumstances, keeping in mind the caution that courts must ensure that public interest litigation is not misused as a vehicle for self publicity or for engaging in personal slander, the writ petition is dismissed,” the Court’s order said in this regard.
Dismissing the plea, the bench cautioned against using PILs for “self-publicity or personal slander.”
The court also recorded Penguin Random House India’s submission that the book carries a disclaimer stating the depiction of smoking is purely representational and that the publisher does not endorse tobacco use.
The petitioner conceded he had not read the full book and objected only to the cover image.
(Edited by Sumavarsha, with inputs from Sreelakshmi Soman)
