IMPORTANT LAW
Magic Remedies--Publication relating to a magic remedy whether in form of talisman, mantra or kavacha or in any other charm of any kind which is alleged to possess miraculous powers for or in diagnosis are cure, mitigation, treatment or prevention of any diseases in human beings or animals or for affecting or influencing in any way structure or any organic functions of body of human beings or animals same would constitute cognizable offence

T.S.Thakur, J.

1. The Drugs and Magic Remedies (Objectionable Advertisements) Act, 1954 was enacted by the Parliament in view of an increasing number of objectionable advertisements being published in newspapers, magazines or otherwise relating to alleged cure for venereal diseases, sexual stimulants and alleged cure for diseases and conditions peculiar to women. The Statement of Objects and Reasons of the said legislation justified the need for enacting a law on the subject because of the tendency among the ignorant and the unwary sections of society to resort to self-medication with harmful drugs or appliances or resort to quacks who indulge in treatments which cause great harm. By enacting the law, the Parliament intended to stop such undesirable advertisements in public interest and to deal with the menace by making a uniform law for the entire country. The legislation is apparently referable to Entry No. 19 in the Concurrent List of the Seventh Schedule to the Constitution in so far as the same deals with undesirable advertisements relating to drugs and Entry No. 26 of List ___ in so far as the same deals with advertisements relating to magic remedies by persons who practice the profession of administering such remedies. Section 3 of the Act inter alia provides that no person shall take any part in the publication of any advertisement referring to any drug calculated to lead to the use of that drug for the purposes enumerated in the said section. Section 4 of the Act forbids taking part in publication of any advertisement relating to any drug if the advertisement contains any matter which directly or indirectly gives a false impression regarding the true character of the drug or makes a false claim for the drug or is otherwise false or misleading in any material particular. Section 5 of the Act prohibits any person carrying on or purporting to carry on the profession of administering magic remedies from taking any part in publication of any advertisement referring to any magic remedy which directly or indirectly claims to be efficacious for any of the purposes specified in Section 3. Section 7 provides for penalties for the contravention of the provisions of the Act or the Rules made thereunder, while Section 8 empowers a Gazetted Officer authorised by the State Government to enter and search and to seize any advertisement which he has reason to believe to contravene any of the provisions of the Act. Section 9(A) makes the offences punishable under the provisions of the Act cognizable. Section 10A provides for the forfeiture in favour of the government of any document, article or thing in respect of which the contravention is made.

2. The present writ petition filed in public interest seeks a Mandamus directing respondents No. 1 to 7 to take action against different Tantriks who are publishing misleading advertisements in different newspapers and are advertising their expertise in black magic by befooling the people. It also prays for a direction against respondents No. 8 to 10 not to publish any advertisement of any magic cure, practice of Tantriks claiming to solve problems of the people by magic or Mantra. The petitioners case as set out, in the petition is that various Tantriks operating in the States of Punjab, Haryana and Union Territory Chandigarh are making fortunes by swindling the innocent and the gullible who are made to believe that the magic cure provided by them is a panacea for all human problems including long and chronic illnesses and various other problems which people face in their lives, like unemployment, failure to pass examinations, failure to travel abroad etc. The petition refers to a large number of advertisements published in different newspapers by these Tantriks, a reading whereof gives an impression as though the person offering the cure does so by some sort of magic. The publication of these advertisements lead the innocent and unwary members of the public to these Tantriks, Babas an