Decided On: 02.11.2001
Appellants: Murli S. Deora
V.
Respondent: Union Of India and ors.
Fundamental right guaranteed under Article 21 of Constitution of India provides that none shall be deprived of his life without due process of law. Then-why a non-smoker should be affected by various diseases including lung cancer or of heart, just because he goes to public places? Is it not indirectly depriving of his life without any process of law? The answer is obviously-yes. Undisputedly smoking is injurious to health and may affect the health of smokers but there is no reason that health of passive smokers should also be injuriously affected. In any case there is no reason to compel non-smokers to be helpless victims of air pollution.
In this view of the matter, when this petition under Article 32 of the Constitution of Indian came learned Attorney General as well as counsel for the parties submitted that considering harmful effect of smoking, smoking in public places is required to be prohibited. In the petition, it is pointed out that tobacco smoking contains harmful contents including nicotine, tar, potential carcinogens, carbon monoxide irritants, asphyxiates and smoke particles which are the cause of many diseases including the cancer. It is claimed that three million people die every year as a result of illness related to the use of tobacco products of which one million people belong to developing countries like India. The World Health Organisation is stated to have estimated that tobacco related deaths can rise to a whopping seven million per year. According to this organisation, in the last half century in the developing countries alone smoking has killed more than sixty million people. Tobacco smoking also adds to the air pollution. Besides cancer, tobacco smoking is responsible for various other fatal diseases to the mankind.
Statutory provisions prohibits smoking in public places and the Bill introduced in the Parliament is pending for consideration before a Select Committee. The State of Rajasthan has claimed to have passed Act No.14 of 2000 provide for prohibition of smoking in place of public work or use and in public service vehicles for that State. It is stated that in Delhi also there is prohibition of smoking in public places. Learned Attorney General for India submits and all the counsel appearing for the other parties agree that considering the adverse effect of smoking in public places, it would be in the interests of the citizens to prohibit the smoking in public places till the statutory provision is made and implemented by the legislative enactment. The persons not indulging in smoking cannot be compelled to or subject to passive smoking on a account of acts of the smokers.
DECISION
Realising the gravity of the situation and considering the adverse effect of smoking on smokers and passive smokers, we direct and prohibit smoking in public places and issue directions to the Union of India, State Governments as well as the Union Territories to take effective steps to ensure prohibiting smoking in public places, namely:
- Auditoriums
- Hospital Buildings
- Health Institutions
- Educational Institutions
- Libraries
- Court Buildings
- Public Office
- Public Conveyances, including Railways.
- Learned Attorney General for India assured the court that Union of India shall take necessary effective steps to give wide publicity to this order by electronics as well as print media to make the general public aware of this order of prohibition of smoking.
Submitted by:- SHUBHANGI GUPTA.