Kolkata: Calcutta High Court has decided to hear a case on whether the import of adult sex toys could be prohibited.The court was hearing an appeal on whether “obscene adult sex toys” could be automatically classified as “prohibited goods” under Section 11 of the Customs Act, 1962, in the absence of specific statutes or notifications. The Customs authority had claimed such imports could be prohibited as they are illegal under penal laws. Section 294 of the BNS makes the sale, distribution, public exhibition, import, export, or circulation of obscene books, pamphlets, papers, drawings, paintings, or figures a punishable criminal offence.However, Justice Smita Das De did not prima facie agree with this rationale. In her Sept 14 order, the judge stated, “When a statutory authority acts completely outside the boundaries of objective law and enters the realm of subjective morality… the high court will not shut its doors.”The HC said that the precise statutory basis for the alleged prohibition requires consideration.The HC is set to hear the case on Oct 9, but clarified, “This court does not express any opinion on the merits of the matter.”
