Kerala High Court Dismisses Legal Challenge to Arundhati Roy's Book Cover Depicting Smoking

Arundhati Roy's literary work 'Mother Mary Comes To Me' faced legal challenges in Kerala.

The Kerala High Court has rejected a Public Interest Litigation (PIL) that targeted author Arundhati Roy's publication 'Mother Mary Comes To Me' due to its cover illustration depicting the author smoking. The petitioner had requested suspension of the book's sales unless it incorporated a statutory health warning label.

Advocate Rajasimhan initiated the legal challenge, contending that the cover imagery constituted an "indirect advertisement" for tobacco products without displaying the required health warnings mandated by law.

The case was heard by a division bench consisting of Chief Justice Nitin Jamdar and Justice Basant Balaji, who ultimately dismissed the petition. In their deliberation, the court acknowledged that Penguin Random House India had already incorporated a disclaimer that stated: "Any depiction of smoking in this book is for representational purposes only. Penguin Random House India does not promote or endorse tobacco use."

During previous proceedings, the judicial bench had instructed the petitioner to consult the appropriate regulatory authority to determine whether the cover violated Section 5 of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA), which explicitly prohibits tobacco product advertising.

In their final assessment, the court determined that the petitioner had failed to properly investigate the legal considerations or verify the presence of the publisher's disclaimer before seeking the extraordinary intervention of the High Court. "The petitioner, despite this, filed a PIL without examining relevant material. Public interest litigation cannot be used as a tool for self-publicity or personal motives. In light of these circumstances, the petition stands dismissed," the court stated in its order.