Overview
- On June 20, the bench of Justices Ravindra Ghuge and Y G Khobragade initiated suo motu proceedings after news outlets reported rampant sales of prohibited items outside educational campuses.
- The court characterized the targeting of impressionable students with drugs, cigarettes and e-cigarettes as “disturbing” and warned of heightened risks of addiction.
- Judges instructed the Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar police department to enforce proactive measures to prevent vendors from operating near schools and colleges.
- Senior advocate P R Katneshwarkar was appointed to prepare and file a public interest litigation seeking formal judicial directives against such sales.
- The intervention aims to bolster student safety and curb the physical and psychological harms posed by unregulated tobacco and narcotic sales to minors.