Court issues legal notices to BCCI, Sony for promoting tobacco products during IPL

The Allahabad High Court on Thursday issued legal notices to Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Sony Pictures Network India Limited (SPNIL) and pan masala manufacturing company Shudh Plus for promoting tobacco products during the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL).

The panel comprising of Chief Justice DB Bhosale and Justice Yashwant Varma issued the above notices after a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) was filed by Prakash Kharwadkar. Kharwadkar, who is a resident of Kanpur, contented that Shudh Plus, a sponsor of IPL, is branding its logo on the jersey of Suresh Raina-led side Gujarat Lions.

What does the law say?

According to Section 5 of the COTPA (Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act), advertisement of any sort of product which has tobacco as one of its ingredients is prohibited. The advertisement is abiding by the law only if it has a statutory warning “chewing or consuming tobacco products is injurious to health”.

But the orange jerseys of Gujarat Lions is flashing the name of the pan masala manufacturing company Shudh Plus without any sort of statutory warning. The petitioner also complained that the pan masala company was carrying out an ad campaign with the tagline “Shudh Plus khao IPL jao”. He feels that this type of tagline is a direct promotion of tobacco consumption. He is worried about the fact that these kinds of ad campaigns may allure the viewers into tobacco consumption.

What can be the consequences?

Section 5 of COTPA (Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act) clearly states that if a company is convicted of the violation of the act, he maybe rightfully imprisoned for a maximum period of two years or maybe fined Rs 1000, or may be subjected to both. In case of second conviction, the maximum term of imprisonment will be five years and the fine will be of Rs 5000, and here also he may be subjected to both.

Also, for not abiding by the clauses of Section 5 of COTPA, the advertisement material may be forfeited by the government. It is yet to be seen what are the necessary changes that Gujarat Lions and BCCI make so as to avoid unnecessary critical consequences.