Shut down illegal shisha, hookah lounges in 30 days: High Court

The High Court today directed the government to shut down illegal shisha and hookah lounges across the country within 30 days.

The court also issued a rule asking the respondents to explain why their failure to close the illegal establishments should not be declared unlawful.

Secretaries to the ministries of home and health; the director general of the Department of Narcotics Control (DNC); the director general of Rapid Action Battalion (Rab); the commissioner of Dhaka Metropolitan Police (DMP); and the administrators of Dhaka North and South city corporations have been made respondents to the rule.

The bench of Justice Razik-Al-Jalil and Justice Md Anowarul Islam passed the order and rule following a writ petition filed as a public interest litigation by Supreme Court lawyer SM Zulfiqure Ali Junu on January 18.

In the petition, the lawyer said illegal shisha and hookah lounges were operating in Dhaka and other urban areas under the guise of cafes, restaurants and clubs without lawful authority, endangering public health and fundamental rights.

He said that shisha contains tobacco, nicotine, carbon monoxide and other addictive substances, which can cause lung cancer, heart disease and respiratory illness. Citing medical studies, he said a single shisha session could be equivalent to smoking 100 to 200 cigarettes, posing serious risks to users and passive smokers.

The petition also said allowing shisha smoking in public places violates Section 4 of the Smoking and Tobacco Products Usage (Control) Act, 2005 (Amended 2013), which prohibits smoking in public places.

It further argued that unauthorised use, supply and promotion of such substances attract penal provisions under the Narcotics Control Act, 2018.

The petitioner alleged that authorities had failed to take action despite reports of minors entering and consuming shisha, raising concerns over addiction and child protection.