Bollywood actor Ranbir Kapoor, who was summoned for allegedly violating the Rajasthan Prevention of Smoking Act in June, has been fined ₹200 in the district court. His counsel paid the fine in his absence on Monday, the Press Trust of India reported.
The 29-year-old was accused of smoking in public while he was shooting for his upcoming film, "Yeh Jawani Hai Deewani", with ex-girlfriend, actress Deepika Padukone in Udaipur, Rajasthan.
An Udaipur resident, Harish Vaishnav, who saw images of the actor smoking publicly in a vernacular daily, had filed a complaint against him in the city court in June. Ranbir was booked for violating Section 5 of the Rajasthan Prevention of Smoking Act, which includes a maximum imprisonment of six months or a fine of ₹200.
Ranbir was asked to appear before the Udaipur court on July 26. Though the actor failed to turn up for the hearing, his lawyer KK Purohit accepted the charges against him on his behalf and pleaded guilty for the act.
He said that the actor did smoke in public but said that his action was a part of the film, adding that the act won't be repeated on his client's part.
"We filed an application pleading guilty to the charges under the Rajasthan Prevention of Smoking Act and seeking exemption for Kapoor's personal appearance before the court," Purohit had said earlier.
Ranbir is not the only star caught in a row over public smoking. Bollywood's King Khan was also under the legal scanner in a similar case of public smoking in May this year.
He was also summoned by a Jaipur court for smoking at the Sawai Man Singh stadium during an Indian Premier League match between his team Kolkata Knight Riders and Rajasthan Royals on April 8.
