'Don't Subscribe to Their Remarks,' Says Health Minister on BJP Lawmakers' Controversial Stand on Tobacco

As a string of comments from BJP parliamentarians over the use of tobacco snowballed into a major embarrassment, Union Health Minister JP Nadda on Friday said the government did not "subscribe" to their remarks that suggested "nil" effect of smoking. The minister was referring to some party lawmakers controversially claiming there was no evidence in India to link cigarettes to cancer.

Mr Nadda also said that his ministry is "consistent" on its stand that the consumption of tobacco has to be reduced.

The minister's comments came hours after BJP parliamentarian from Assam, Ram Prasad Sarmah said that anyone who believed that smoking causes cancer should consider this - "I know two elderly people who drank a bottle of alcohol and smoked 60 cigarettes every day. One is still alive, the other died at 86."

Evidence, according to Mr Sarmah, that "whether smoking causes cancer or not is debatable."

The 60-year-old has become the third parliamentarian in as many days from the ruling BJP to side with the tobacco industry.

His party colleague Shyam Charan Gupta told NDTV on Thursday, "Sugar causes diabetes... do we ban it?" He also denied that his ownership of a beedi (hand-rolled cigarettes) empire that's worth hundreds of crores may have influenced his opinion.

These lawmakers are on a parliamentary committee that has asked for more time to review the government's plans, to enforce larger pictorial warnings on cigarette packets starting April 1.

"The ministry, the party and I do not associate ourselves with his (Gupta) statement. We disassociate ourselves. He is an MP and member of the committee, I would not like to comment on him," the Health Minister said, adding the issue of pictorial warnings on cigarette packs would be decided on merit.

Slamming the parliamentarians' remarks as "blatantly foolish", former Health Minister and PMK leader A Ramadoss told NDTV that such comments claiming there is no evidence in India to link cigarettes to cancer is leading to the global impression that "Indian MPs have low acumen."