Karnataka High Court upholds prohibition on hookahs, saying they are just as deadly as cigarettes

BENGALURU: The Karnataka High Court dismissed a number of petitions contesting the state government’s prohibition on the sale of hookah products, ruling that the state government’s move is both fully legal and strictly compliant with Article 47 of the Indian Constitution.

According to Article 47, the state must work to make it illegal to consume intoxicating beverages and pharmaceuticals that are harmful to one’s health unless prescribed by a physician.

Judge M. Nagaprasanna dismissed the petitions filed by owners of hookah bars contesting the health department’s February 7 notification this year, citing the New York Poison Control Center’s study that links hookah smoking to carbon monoxide poisoning and chemicals like burning charcoal used in the process to heart attacks, reduced lung function, respiratory symptoms, cancer, and early death.

The court said that each hour-long hookah session is expected to consist of 200 puffs, adding, “If it is 200 puffs every session, that is comparable to 100 cigarettes… The chemicals in hookah are the same as those in cigarettes, and it is just as dangerous and addicting. A notice about the health risks associated with cigarettes must be included on every package; the same warning would apply to alcohol bottles but not to hookahs.

As a result, the state’s actions strictly comply with Article 47 of the Constitution,” he said. The judge also said that a World Health Organization report indicates that the number of people smoking shisha is rising worldwide and that the smoke includes a lot of toxins that may lead to illnesses, including cancer.
Prof. US Vishal Rao from the Institute of Policy Research, the Verve Foundation Trust, and former High Court judge P Krishna Bhat all supported the court by intervening and putting papers concerning the negative consequences of hookah in it.

According to Justice Nagaprasanna, the argument in favor of hookah is that it is less dangerous than cigarettes, yet research indicates that it may expose users to nicotine, an addictive substance.
In public settings, hookah is usually used in groups, with each person passing around the same mouthpiece. There’s a higher chance of getting illnesses like hepatitis.

The idea that smoking a hookah lowers your chances of developing tobacco-related illnesses is untrue once again. Many of the poisons found in cigarettes are present in hookahs. Smokers who use hookahs are exposed to significant levels of pollutants. The court said, “It is a fact that smoking a hookah is more harmful than smoking a pack of cigarettes.”
The petitioners claim to be selling herbal hookahs, but the court noted that they are really carbon monoxide storage facilities. The court said, “It is alleged there are about 800 hookah places and bars in Karnataka,” and expressed confusion as to why the state had remained silent for so long, allowing them to spread.