E-Paper
Allahabad HC seeks Centre’s response to ‘Chinese’ garlic ban
The order was passed by a division bench on February 20, 2026, in response to a public interest litigation petition filed by lawyer ML Yadav
The Lucknow bench of the Allahabad high court has again sought a response from the Centre regarding a plea to prevent the entry of harmful and banned ‘Chinese’ garlic into the country.
Listing the matter on March 30 for next hearing on the request made by the Centre’s counsel to provide time to obtain instructions from Union of India in the matter, the court provided him time for the said purpose in light of its two earlier detailed orders passed on September 26 and 27, 2024 respectively.
The court in its earlier orders had directed the Centre’s counsel to seek instructions as to what exactly is the mechanism in place for preventing entry of such items inside the country and whether any such exercise have been undertaken to find out as to what is source of entry and how the government proposes to prevent it. The court had also summoned a designated food safety officer of the state regarding this matter.
The order was passed by a division bench of Chief Justice Arun Bhansali and Justice Jaspreet Singh on February 20, 2026, in response to a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by lawyer ML Yadav. He sought directives for a complete ban on the entry of these harmful items into the country.
Yadav contended that Chinese garlic is banned in India due to its harmful effects. He alleged that, despite the ban, such garlic is readily available across the country, including Lucknow. The petitioner, a practising advocate, had even brought around half-a-kilogram of Chinese garlic with him.
In its September 27, 2024 order, the court had sought a response from the Centre regarding the plea to prevent the entry of harmful Chinese garlic into the country. As per the court’s earlier order, food safety officer Vijay Pratap Singh had appeared before the court.
