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Srinagar: Jammu and Kashmir High Court has dismissed a Public Interest Litigation, seeking among others court’s directions to allow sale and usage of e-cigarettes in the J&K.
“The Government of India has enacted a statute called the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes (Production, Manufacture, Import, Export, Transport, Sale, Distribution, Storage and Advertisement) Act, 2019 (Act No. 42 of 2019) which has been published in the Gazette of India dated 05th of December, 2019 prohibiting electronic cigarettes (e-cigarettes),” said a division bench of Chief Justice Gita Mittal and Justice Puneet Gupta.
“There was no appearance on behalf of the petitioner on 19th of August, 2020 when noticing the above fact the matter was adjourned for today in the interest of justice,” the court said, adding, “The Government of India has therefore issued the legislation prohibiting use, sale and manufacture of electronic nicotine delivery system. Clearly, the petitioner has lost interest in prosecution of the instant.” Subsequently, the court dismissed the petition “as satisfied.”
The PIL had been filed by one Mushtaq Ahmed Shah, seeking directions to the authorities to allow the use and sale of Electronic Nicotine Delivery Systems (ENDS) or e-cigarettes, if necessary by framing necessary regulations for this purpose.
He had pleaded for a committee to be constituted to conduct a proper research and analysis of ENDS and thereafter formulate rules and regulations for use and sale of ENDS.
He had stated that the conventional cigarette smoking can easily be eradicated by making use of e-cigarettes which has less harmful effects as compared to tobacco products.
He had further stated that to enable cigarette smokers like him to switch over to safer methods of nicotine consumption, with overall objective of achieving de-addiction, the usage of e-cigarettes is seen a first step.
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