Bhutan is marking the first implementation of its well-tuned “tobacco law” as it prepares to charge a 24-year-old monk for carrying 72 packets of chewing tobacco.
The unnamed monk, who is reported to be a student of century-old monastery, was caught and detained as he failed to produce a customs receipt when challenged by police. The online edition of the Kuensel on Friday reported that the monk carried such a “large” quantity of the drug that he purchased from the Indian border town of Jaigoan.
The “tobacco law” restricts anyone carrying the drug above 150 gm or 200 cigarettes a month and can be legally imported, but should produce the custom receipt always.
According to the anti-smoking law that came into force this month, he is likely to face a jail term of maximum five years as he has been charged with consuming and smuggling contraband tobacco.
