Observing that the “menace” of illegal posters and banners are not just confined to Bangalore city alone, the Karnataka High Court on Monday directed the State government to initiate steps to prevent the “menace” across the State, particularly in all the cities coming under the jurisdiction of various city corporations.
Justice A.N. Venugopala Gowda issued the direction after noticing that Section 1(i) of the Karnataka Open Places (Prevention of Disfigurement) Act, 1981 applies to all the city corporations constituted under the Karnataka Municipal Corporations Act. And the law has not been extended to other major cities.
The court also said the government requires to issue notifications, in terms of Section 1(ii) of the Prevention of Disfigurement Act, indicating the dates from which the provisions of this law would be applicable to the municipalities and local areas.
It was observed orally by the court that the law to prevent disfigurement of open places was not being implemented despite lapse of 30 years since its enactment. The court had last month suo motu initiated proceedings on illegal publicity materials during the hearing of a petition related to dispute over putting up a hoarding in Bangalore.
Meanwhile, in response to earlier directions, the government on Monday told the court that as many as 69 criminal cases have been registered against those who had put up posters or banners illegally in Bangalore, and the Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) is coordinating with the City Police to ensure that lawbreakers are brought to justice. The court was also informed that the government would shortly constitute a committee to frame rules for effective implementation of the law preventing disfigurement of public places. Further hearing on the issue has been adjourned to December 15.
