Either BBMP is casual or utterly negligent: Karnataka High Court on election hoardings

The high court on Tuesday directed the BBMP to file a proper, detailed, comprehensive statement of objection/response in a batch of PILs pertaining to illegal hoardings/flexes/banners in Bengaluru city. A division bench comprising Chief Justice Prasanna B Varale and Justice Krishna S Dixit gave this direction after the counsel for the civic agency prayed for some more time to supply all the necessary details.

During the hearing, senior advocate Prof Ravivarma Kumar, appearing for one of the petitioners, submitted that BBMP has so far failed to file a response with respect to the earlier directions issued by the court. He submitted that there is a provision in the Act and the Rules for putting up commercial advertisement hoardings, subject to prior permission of the corporation on the payment of the requisite fee to the corporation.

He said that for the reasons best known to the corporation, to date the corporation is unable to place before the court details whether the commercial hoardings are erected either with the prior permission of the corporation or by making the necessary payment of fee to the corporation.

“There cannot be any dispute that such mushroom growing of hoardings would not only cause a serious disturbance in the free traffic movement but also result in loss of revenue. Prof Kumar was justified in making this submission that the growth of such hoardings leads to the impression in the general public that either the authorities are casual in their duties or for the reasons best known to them, they are showing utter negligence to their duties. And in both these situations the sufferer is public at large and citizens of Bengaluru in particular,” the bench said.

The bench adjourned the hearing on October 11 and directed the BBMP to stick to the timeline and that in no case adjournment will be granted for filing reply/response.