Resolution on removing hoardings sent to govt, Palike tells High Court

The BBMP on Thursday informed the High Court that it had sent its resolution to the State government to remove all advertisement hoardings in the City.

During the hearing of a PIL petition by Vivekananda Shetty, a citizen of Bengaluru, counsel for BBMP, Srinidhi, said the BBMP had decided in January to get rid of hoardings and had written to the State government about its decision.

“The BBMP Council, on January 28, 2015, had resolved to ban all the advertisements in public places within the BBMP limits. The same has been sent to the government for approval,” the counsel informed the division bench comprising acting Chief Justice S K Mukherjee and Justice Ram Mohan Reddy.

He said the government was yet to respond to the proposal.

When the bench informed the same to the counsel for petitioners, he welcomed the decision and said that if the BBMP Council had decided to clear advertisement hoarding from the City, they had no issues with it and the matter could be disposed of.

Then the acting Chief Justice asked the government counsel, “What you have to say now? You can’t even display photos in public.”

Principal government counsel R Devdas sought some time to get instructions from the government. The petitioners had moved the High Court seeking a ban on advertisements, flexes and banners on fourteen roads, including Seshadri Road, Nrupathunga Road, Queen’s Road, Palace Road and Cubbon Road.

The petitioner had contended that the BBMP was violating its own resolution of the year 2004 to ban advertisements on these stretches and sought a direction to implement the resolution to ban advertisements on these busy roads.

The division bench, considering the government’s submission, adjourned the matter.

Stay extended

The High Court has censured the BBMP for insisting on demolishing shops in the KR Market without rehabilitating the traders. It also extended an earlier stay order on demolition of the shops.

Hearing a petition by Shanta Gowri and other traders on Thursday, Justice Raghvendra Singh Chauhan extended the stay order granted on April 8, 2015, until further orders.  

The traders maintained that they would be deprived of their livelihood if the BBMP went ahead with the demolition. They claimed that the demolition order by the BBMP commissioner was an “attempt to please some vested interests”.

Lashing out at the BBMP, Justice Chauhan remarked orally: “Where will the traders go if you demolish the shops? Before you demolish, you have to rehabilitate the traders. How can the commissioner pass such orders without hearing the petitioners? You are welcome to take action in accordance with law, but prior to that you have to consider the poor people. It is not a legal problem, you have to consider on (the) basis of humanity. They are not income tax payers. This is how (the) unauthorised sector works in India.”  The judge directed the BBMP to file its objections in two weeks.