Ajay Devgan fined Rs 100 for smoking at Inox Courtyard
HERALD REPORTER
PANJIM, AUG 31
Panjim Police will shortly issuing notice to Bollywood actor Ajay Devgan to pay a fine of Rs 100 for smoking in public while on the sets of his movie “Golmal 3” at Inox Courtyard in May.
The police action follows a complaint filed by the Director of Health Services Rajnanada Desai to Crime Branch in June, against the actor who was once fined for smoking in Chandigarh.
Desai’s complaint was in reply to National Organisation for Tobacco Eradication (NOTE) that asked Health Services to fine the actor as he did not obey ‘no smoking in public’ rule.
The complaint letter was transferred to North Goa Superintendent of Police Arvind Gawas who in turn has directed Panjim police to issue a notice of fine of Rs 100 to Devgan for smoking in public.
Deputy Superintendent of Police Deu Benaulikar said that they will issue a fine notice to the actor, shortly.
NOTE in a complaint to State Tobacco Control Cell and the Union Ministry of Health and Family Welfare had asked for a stringent action against the Bollyywood actor as he was becoming a habitual offender of the ‘no smoking in public’ rule.
Local newspaper had flashed photographs of Devgan smoking on the sets of the movie at Inox courtyard with the film director Rohit Shetty standing an arm’s length away on May 20.
NOTE General Secretary Shekhar Salkar has already in the past dragged the Bollywood icon Amitabh Bachchan and Shah Rukh Khan to Court for directly or indirectly promoting smoking.
It may be recalled, Salkar had urged that fine for the first offence should be Rs 500, for the second offence it should be raised to Rs 5000 and even more, he strongly suggested that, punishment of imprisonment for a period of six months in addition to a fine of Rs 5000 should be imposed for the third offence.