HC upholds gutkha ban

The Bombay High Court issued an interim order on Saturday upholding a state government notification banning gutkha and paan masala.

We do not find this a fit case for grant of interim relief against implementation of the order, a division Bench of Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Justice N M Jamdar said,while rejecting the challenge by a group of manufracturers.

In a significant observation,the judges said gutkha and paan masala had been defined as food under Food Safety and Standards Act FSSA,2006. It is sufficient that the substance enters the mouth of a person. Even if it does not enter the digestive system,it can be classified as food, they said. The ban was imposed through a notification dated July 19.