India state court cancels 2014 federal rule on stringent tobacco pack warnings

Godfrey Phillips India

15/12/2017 14:28

By Aditya Kalra 
    NEW DELHI, Dec 15 (Reuters) - An Indian court on Friday 
quashed federal rules that mandated stringent graphic health 
warnings on tobacco products, lawyers involved in the case said, 
in a decision seen as a major victory for the tobacco industry 
and a setback for health advocates.  
    India's Supreme Court last year ordered enforcement of the 
government's 2014 federal rules that required 85 percent of a 
tobacco pack's surface to be covered in health warnings, up from 
20 percent earlier, despite protests by the tobacco industry. 
    At the same time, the top court had asked a court in 
southern Karnataka state to rule on the dozens of tobacco 
industry pleas that challenged the federal rules. 
    That court on Friday struck down the government's 2014 
notification, said Aradhana L, a lawyer at Poovayya & Co, who 
represented tobacco companies including India's ITC  ITC.NS  and 
Philip Morris International Inc's  PM.N  Indian partner, Godfrey 
Phillips India Ltd  GDFR.NS . 
    The government lawyer in the case, Krishna S. Dixit, 
confirmed the rules had been struck down but said he would 
appeal in the Supreme Court. 
 
 (Reporting by Aditya Kalra; Editing by Sanjeev Miglani) 
 ((aditya.kalra@thomsonreuters.com; +91-011-49548021; Reuters 
Messaging: aditya.kalra.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net)(Twitter: 
@adityakalra)) 
 
Keywords: INDIA TOBACCO/