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Restaurants with trade licence can serve tobacco in hookah, Karnataka High Court rules

Hookah joints have been facing multiple legal issues since they were launched in India.

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Siezed hookahs at BBMP Health Centre, 2011
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Hookah joints are likely to be back in full swing in Bengaluru post the Karnataka High Court ruling that said there was no prohibition on using tobacco in hookahs. The High Court declared that restaurants that already had a trade licence from the local authorities (BBMP) did not need a separate permit to serve hookahs in their smoking zone, the New Indian Express reports.

This was declared by the HC in response to a petition filed Diamond Enterprises that stated that police were insisting on a separate licence from the BBMP. When in turn they approached BBMP, they stated that no separate licence was required for serving hookah as long as provisions of the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products (Prohibition of Advertisement and Regulation of Trade and Commerce, Production, Supply and Distribution) Act 2003 were followed.

Hookah joints have been facing multiple legal issues since they were launched in India. Many state governments clamped down on hookah bars and forced their closure. The Supreme Court on December 8, 2014 finally set aside orders by civic bodies of several states prohibiting smoking or sale of tobacco in restaurants and hotels.

Many hookah joints in Karnataka have been raided over the last few months under suspicion that narcotics were being added to the hookah. The Bengaluru police has stated that they will continue to conduct raids if any such suspicions arise.

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