New Delhi: The Supreme Court Friday refused to admit a petition that objected to the cover of Booker Prize winner Arundhati Roy’s latest book, Mother Mary Comes To Me , which shows her smoking a bidi .

The petitioner, advocate Rajasimhan, argued that the cover image violated the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA), 2003, because it came without a statutory health warning.

A bench of Chief Justice of India Surya Kant and Justice Joymalya Bagchi said the book carried a disclaimer and the image was not used to promote smoking. Show Full Article

“There is a disclaimer in the book. The author is a renowned person who has carved out a name for herself. The publisher (Penguin Random House India) is also a well-known publisher. They have not promoted smoking, and did

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