Bengaluru police crackdown on Hookah bars that are running after ban

Days after the hookah ban bill was passed in the assembly, the Bengaluru police launched a crackdown on hookah parlors across the city. The Central Crime Branch sleuths conducted multiple raids across the city and booked the owners.

Also Read - K’taka assembly passes bill banning hookah bars, cigarette sale to those under 21

According to reports, The CCB police have identified 20 hookah bars in the city running even after the ban. The cops also seized hookah pots and flavours that are worth more than ₹12 lakh and warned people who have been consuming them even after the ban. The police will strictly watch such illegal operations and even slap an action on the consumers.

Last week, the Karnataka Legislative Assembly passed a bill banning the sale and consumption of hookah across the state. The sale of cigarettes to people under 21 is also prohibited in the state. The Karnataka government has amended the Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act (COTPA) and said that the amendment protects citizens' health from lung-related diseases.

A fine of ₹1 lakh and three years of imprisonment will be levied against the owners of hookah parlours if found guilty. The Karnataka government has also banned the sale of cigarettes and other tobacco products within a radius of 100 meters from schools and colleges.

On February 7, Karnataka Health and Family Welfare Minister Dinesh Gundu Rao announced a blanket ban on Hookah across the state in a bid to tackle tobacco-related diseases. The bill was tabled in the current legislative assembly sessions, and it was successfully passed.