HOME | SCOOP!! & NEWS | HAPPENINGS Onscreen smoking ban deferred18th Dec 2005 10.07 IST By Agencies Differences between Ministries of Health and Information & Broadcasting have forced the Centre to defer its decision to implement the onscreen smoking ban from January 1. Additional Solicitor General (ASG) P P Malhotra told the Delhi High Court that the ban will come into effect from March 1, 2006 and not from January 1 as scheduled earlier. 
This is the second time that the Centre has deferred the decision to impose onscreen smoking ban, which was originally notified to come into effect from October 2 this year. A Division Bench of Justice Mukul Mudgal and Justice H R Malhotra, which is hearing a petition filed by noted Bollywood producer-director Mahesh Bhatt against the onscreen smoking ban, has asked the two ministries to sort out the differences and fixed January 13 for further hearing. Meanwhile, differences between Information & Broadcasting Ministry and Health Ministry have come to the fore. In an affidavit filed in the court, the former said it shared the latter's concerns and supported their anti-smoking campaign but maintained that "the curbs on smoking visuals etc. have to be within the confines of Articles 19 of the Constitution keeping in view the tenets of artistic freedom and creative expressions being not unduly curbed." The Information and Broadcasting Ministry also pointed out "the film and Television industry themselves have agreed to assist in propagation of Health Ministry's anti-smoking campaign through alternative action." The I&B Ministry said the clauses in the rules framed by the Health Ministry to ban onscreen smoking can be implemented only under the Cinematograph Act and Cable TV Networks (regulations) Act through appropriate amendments. (The picture shows Amitabh Bachchan lighting a bidi in Bunty Aur Babli .) Related Mahesh Bhatt Amitabh Bachchan Bunty Aur Babli | ALSO READ scoop ~ Michael Jackson converts to Islam: report ~ A R Rahman inspires people to vote! ~ Hrithik Roshan to play lord Ram? ~ Sada enters Bollywood with 'Khallballi' ~ Konkona Sen does a lesbian act! ~ Ash and Bon Jovi unite for Live Earth ~ How Salman improvised a romantic scene with Katrina! ~ Katrina Kaif did 'Yuvvraaj' for emotional reasons ( more in scoop ) happenings ~ Big B, Bon Jovi and Roger Waters team up for a cause ~ 'Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye!' to premiere at IFFI ( more in happenings ) AKC HOT INDEX ECARDS > Halloween, New Year, Diwali, Birthday, Valentines, Love, Christmas MOVIES Dostana, Dasvidaniya, Ek Vivaah Aisa Bhi, EMI, Golmaal Returns, Fashion, Heroes, Roadside Romeo, Kidnap, Drona, Yuvvraaj , Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi , Oye Lucky! Lucky Oye! , Sorry Bhai MUSIC Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi , Yuvvraaj celebs » wallpapers » the celeb A-Z who's in » Katrina Kaif | Deepika Padukone | Ranbir Kapoor | Harman Baweja | Aishwarya Rai | Abhishek Bachchan | Imran Khan | Shahrukh Khan | Salman Khan | Aamir Khan | Hrithik Roshan | Akshay Kumar | Zayed Khan | Saif Ali Khan | John Abraham | Shahid Kapur | Kareena Kapoor | Vidya Balan | Priyanka Chopra | Rani Mukherjee | Mallika Sherawat | Bipasha Basu | Preity Zinta | Kajol | Neha Dhupia | Sameera Reddy | Juhi Chawla | Karisma Kapoor | Madhuri Dixit | Zeenat Aman | Payal Rohatgi | Sneha Ullal | Mahima Chaudhary | Meghna Naidu | Gayatri Joshi | Rakhi Sawant | Bhumika Chawla | Lisa Ray | Dimple Kapadia | Ayesha Takia | Dia Mirza | Sushmita Sen | Amisha Patel | Esha Deol | Amrita Rao | Amrita Arora | Genelia D'Souza | Arjun Rampal | Amitabh Bachchan | Vivek Oberoi | Raima Sen | Riya Sen | Rekha | Rimi Sen | Nigar Khan | Tanushree Dutta | Yana Gupta | Deepal Shaw | Shilpa Shetty | Celina Jaitley | Sonam Kapoor | Neha Oberoi | Nisha Rawal | Manjari Fadnis | Kamal Haasan | Rajnikant | Asin | Sanjay Dutt | Shahid Kapoor | Sherlyn Chopra | Farhan Akhtar | Prachi Desai | Koel Purie | Shahana Goswami | Adah Sharma | Kangana Ranaut | Anushka Sharma | Mugdha Godse | Masumeh Makhija | Minissha Lamba | Vidya Malvade | Malaika Arora | Shweta Kumar | | more... | 
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