The Rajasthan High Court, in a Public Interest Litigation concerning the implementation of the Prohibition of Electronic Cigarettes Act, 2019, has issued directions aimed at enforcing the law in its entirety. A division bench consisting of Justices Sanjeev Prakash Sharma and Sanjeet Purohit, building on an earlier order dated May 6, 2025, has instructed the Director General of Police (DGP) of Rajasthan to form a team of officers drawn from the various range headquarters. This team is to take steps to fully implement the provisions of the Act. In tandem, the Court has directed the Chief Secretary of the State to appoint authorised officers at each district level—persons of the rank of Collector or Additional Collector—to ensure implementation of Section 6 of the Act onward.
In the course of the hearing, the Court was informed by the officer-in-charge, an Additional Superintendent of Police, that although some actions had been taken — seizing electronic cigarettes and blocking certain websites by order of the Central Government — much more remains to be done. The Court remarked that these steps, though welcome, were insufficient given the mandate of the 2019 Act, and that a comprehensive plan was essential to achieve the aim of complete prohibition.
Accordingly, the High Court ordered preparation of a “detailed action plan” which would lay out the steps to be taken in every district for full enforcement. Such a plan is to include actions already taken and those yet to be initiated. The Court has also directed that a compliance report be filed detailing what has been done in each district before the next hearing.
Additionally, counsel for the Union of India was directed to submit a report concerning the steps taken by Union authorities: the number of websites blocked so far, and actions pursued against sellers of e-cigarettes. The Court has posted the matter for further hearing on a later date, being November 12, 2025.
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