Delhi HC Directs Centre to Address Petition on Illegal Sale of Hookahs Online

The Delhi High Court directed the Central Government on Tuesday to treat a petition regarding the alleged illegal sale of hookahs and their variants, which lack health warnings, on e-commerce platforms as a formal representation and to issue appropriate orders within three months.

A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Manmohan and Justice Tushar Rao Gedela noted that the petitioner, Jagatmitra Foundation, filed the public interest litigation (PIL) without first approaching the authorities. The court instructed the petitioner to initiate appropriate proceedings if unsatisfied with the authorities’ decision.

“You are raising an important issue. You must make a decision. The petitioner argues that statutory provisions are not being implemented in this area. You need to establish a standard procedure,” the bench stated.

“The writ petition is disposed of with direction to respondents to treat the writ petition as a representation and pass appropriate orders, including taking necessary action in accordance with the law, within 12 weeks,” it added.
The petitioner argued that consuming hookahs in public is a health hazard and that the uncontrolled sale and promotion of tobacco products online violate the existing legal framework. It was contended that “second-hand” smoke also poses risks to non-smokers and that smoking hookahs contributes to the spread of communicable diseases.

Claiming that the unregulated sale of hookahs online infringes on the public’s right to health, the petitioner had requested the establishment of a mechanism to regulate this issue.