DH apologises: Allahabad MP had recused from parliamentary panel meet

The news report ‘House panel for less warning space on tobacco packs’, which appeared on this page on March 12, 2016, mentioned that the Committee on Subordinate Legislation of Lok Sabha, of which Allahabad MP Shyama Charan Gupta was one of the members, met on March 11, 2016 to finalise its report on ‘The Cigarette and Other Tobacco products (Packaging and labelling) Amendment Rules, 2014. It creates an impression that Mr Gupta attended the said meeting, which was not the case.

The Lok Sabha Committee on Subordinate Legislation examines all regulations, rules, sub-rules and bye-laws commonly known as ‘Orders’ and effectively comes out with oversight on delegated legislation. As one of its tasks, the panel examined a new set of rules framed under the Cigarettes and other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act, 2003. The rules were published in the official gazette on October 15, 2014 and were to come into force from April 1, 2015. The amended rules envisaged an increase in the size of the specified health warning from 40% to 85% of the principal display area of the package of all kinds of tobacco products.

In keeping with the highest traditions and conventions of the Parliamentary etiquette, Mr Gupta had recused himself from the meeting on March 11, when the report was finalised. The said news report did not reflect this fact. It gave rise to a negative and misleading impression about the proceedings of the House panel’s meeting, which was completely unintended. There was no intention on our part to cast any aspersion on Mr Gupta, as a member of the Parliament and proceedings of the Committee.

Deccan Herald deeply regrets the unfortunate and inadvertent error, and apologises unconditionally for the embarrassment caused to Mr Gupta. The reference to him in the report is retracted.

- Editor