The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) has issued a directive to disallow tobacco and alcohol-related advertisements in cricketing activities. This is commendable. We must remember though that Indian law prevents anybody advertising tobacco and alcohol. So, the ‘ban’ word may not make sense, as by law it is prohibited. The national legislation: The Cigarettes and Other Tobacco Products Act, 2003 (COTPA) has provisions to prohibit advertising tobacco products. Yet, the mandate regarding indirect and surrogate advertising is not defined, the tobacco industry exploits this ambiguity in promotional campaigns. So, the problem is not with direct  advertisement but surrogate advertising.

Complex questions

We witnessed in the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL), our heroes featuring in surrogate advertising for tobacco products. Is the BCCI going to ban this kind of advertising, which is indirect or surrogate? That is the bigger question. In fact, the BCCI can take a bold decision of stopping surrogate advertising by citing moral values rather than just looking at this through the legal lens.