During a hearing on Thursday, the Bombay High Court declined to suspend the Food and Drug Administration's (FDA) order banning the manufacture, storage, distribution, transportation, and sale of tobacco and areca nuts, commonly known as pan masala, with or without additives, throughout Maharashtra. The court stressed the state's duty to protect public health, with Justices GS Kulkarni and Firdosh P Pooniwalla highlighting each state's responsibility to prioritize the well-being of its citizens. They emphasized that Maharashtra's decision should not be influenced by the actions of other states like Uttar Pradesh, which had not implemented a similar ban.
The case pertained to a petition filed by Dharampal Satyapal Ltd, the manufacturer of Rajnigandha Pan Masala through advocate Yashwardhan Tiwari, challenging the FDA’s July 2023 order banning the sale and transport of Pan Masala and Gutka products in Maharashtra. The petition argued that Pan Masala is categorised as a food item under the Food Safety and Standards (Food Products Standards and Food Additives) Regulations, 2011, and does not contain tobacco or nicotine.
The petitioners further contended that the FDA’s repeated issuance of prohibitory orders since 2012 amounted to an unconstitutional and arbitrary permanent prohibition. They argued against the extension of the ban beyond the permissible one-year period and questioned the lack of scientific studies regarding the harmful effects of areca nut/betel nut.
The FDA, however, argued that the first ban was issued in 2012, but the petitioners have delayed at least 12 years in approaching the court. Moreover, the court, on several instances has upheld similar notifications banning gutka/pan masala as challenged by the petitioner. Further, it was also submitted that this is purely a policy decision taken annually by the government after consideration of various medical and health-related reports available with hospitals and other agencies and is not in violation of any law or order passed by the court.