A state-based tobacco control NGO has now approached the TN CEO, urging him to identify and bar candidates associated with, or funded by the tobacco industry.
As the Assembly elections in the state draw closer, several questions are being raised with respect to the sources of funding for the campaigns undertaken by various political parties. Keeping public interest in mind, a tobacco control NGO – the TNPFTC has now approached the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Tamil Nadu, Rajesh Lakhoni, with a request to bar candidates from seeking campaign funding from the tobacco industry.
The petition also demands political candidates with a stake in the tobacco lobby be identified and barred from contesting the elections due as there would be a clear ‘conflict of interest’ affecting the state’s public health policies. S Cyril Alexander, the State Convener of TNPFTC (Tamil Nadu People’s Forum for Tobacco Control), says, “The Department of Health and Family Welfare had proposed an Amendment in 2015 to the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003.
As per the new Section 2 of this Act, ‘It is expedient in the public interest that the Union should take under its control the tobacco industry and protect the development and implementation of public health policies with respect to tobacco control from the commercial and vested interests of the tobacco industry.’
This clearly means that government officials, including members of political parties should work in the interest of the public and not be associated with any part of the tobacco industry.” “However, we have found that a majority of parties active in the state, have a few members, who in one way or another have some stake in the tobacco lobby.
Some highly-placed politicians even have relatives working as middlemen for the industry, which violates Section 2 of the COTPA 2003,” he adds. The NGO has also urged the CEO to ensure that the election booths in the state are kept smoke free and sought a ban on the sale of tobacco products within 100 metres of the polling booths. We received an acknowledgment that our letter has reached the CEO. We are hoping for a positive response on the same.”
Conflict of interest
Members of a parliamentary panel looking into the issue of pictorial warnings on tobacco products are said to have favoured a drastic reduction in size of such warnings to 50 per cent from the proposed 85 per cent, ahead of the April 1 deadline set for increasing the size of the pictorial warnings. The panel said, “the proposed graphic warnings have potential to severely affect Indian farmers and companies.” One of the members of this decision-making committee is Shyam Charan Gupta, an MP who is also a beedi baron.
As the Assembly elections in the state draw closer, several questions are being raised with respect to the sources of funding for the campaigns undertaken by various political parties. Keeping public interest in mind, a tobacco control NGO – the TNPFTC has now approached the Chief Electoral Officer (CEO) of Tamil Nadu, Rajesh Lakhoni, with a request to bar candidates from seeking campaign funding from the tobacco industry.
The petition also demands political candidates with a stake in the tobacco lobby be identified and barred from contesting the elections due as there would be a clear ‘conflict of interest’ affecting the state’s public health policies. S Cyril Alexander, the State Convener of TNPFTC (Tamil Nadu People’s Forum for Tobacco Control), says, “The Department of Health and Family Welfare had proposed an Amendment in 2015 to the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) 2003.
As per the new Section 2 of this Act, ‘It is expedient in the public interest that the Union should take under its control the tobacco industry and protect the development and implementation of public health policies with respect to tobacco control from the commercial and vested interests of the tobacco industry.’
This clearly means that government officials, including members of political parties should work in the interest of the public and not be associated with any part of the tobacco industry.” “However, we have found that a majority of parties active in the state, have a few members, who in one way or another have some stake in the tobacco lobby.
Some highly-placed politicians even have relatives working as middlemen for the industry, which violates Section 2 of the COTPA 2003,” he adds. The NGO has also urged the CEO to ensure that the election booths in the state are kept smoke free and sought a ban on the sale of tobacco products within 100 metres of the polling booths. We received an acknowledgment that our letter has reached the CEO. We are hoping for a positive response on the same.”
Conflict of interest
Members of a parliamentary panel looking into the issue of pictorial warnings on tobacco products are said to have favoured a drastic reduction in size of such warnings to 50 per cent from the proposed 85 per cent, ahead of the April 1 deadline set for increasing the size of the pictorial warnings. The panel said, “the proposed graphic warnings have potential to severely affect Indian farmers and companies.” One of the members of this decision-making committee is Shyam Charan Gupta, an MP who is also a beedi baron.