JOIN USThe High Court on Tuesday directed the State government to make its stand clear regarding the ban on the sale of gutka in the State, by the next hearing.
Hearing a petition filed by the Cancer Patients’ Aid Association, the Division Bench comprising acting Chief Justice K Sreedhar Rao and Justice B V Nagarathna asked the State government why it could not think of banning gutka in the State.
The petitioners argued that gutka and pan masala were classified as food items and should be prohibited as per the Food Safety and Standard Act, 2006.
“Many states have banned gutka and the latest to join the list is the Odisha government. However, the Karnataka government has not taken any action in this regard,” said Jeyna Kothari, counsel for the petitioners.
Implementation
Pointing out that the Union government had, in April 2012, written to the state governments to implement the ban, Kothari said the governments in Madhya Pradesh, Kerala, Bihar and Himachal Pradesh had already banned gutka and pan masala.
Case pending
The advocate for the government, however, said a case on gutka ban was pending before the Supreme Court and an hearing is scheduled on February 8.
“Hence, we request the bench to adjourn the hearing till the Supreme Court decides on the matter,” said the advocate. Hearing the arguments, the court directed the State government to file objections regarding the gutka ban after February 8 and adjourned the case.