Polls spoil the beauty of govt school

Attractive artworks painted on the compound wall of a government school three months ago were whitewashed on the election commission's instructions, although the paintings didn't have any political messaging. 

In January, volunteers from Shilpa Foundation and Fedilitus Art Gallery had painted eye-catching artworks on the building and compound wall of the Government Kannada Higher Primary School located in Victoria Layout, Yalagonda Palya, as part of a CSR initiative. Some local residents also volunteered for the work, which was aimed at beautifying government schools and drawing students to them. 

"We had painted butterflies, birds, balloons, flowers, plants, hills, water and others," Achyuth Gowda, Founder, Fedilitus Corp, told DH. "I don't know how that violated the model code of conduct? Officials just whitewashed the paintings." He maintained that the artworks had no political messaging. 

The volunteers have, however, decided not to blame the election commission and decided to repaint the walls before the start of the next academic year. "We understand that the officials were just doing their job. We have decided to paint the same artwork on the wall as it would not cost lakhs and crores of rupees. We are waiting for permission from the school authorities since it's summer holidays." 

Attempts to reach election commission officials for comment did not fructify.