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Congress workers violate HC order while welcoming Rahul Gandhi

Enthusiastic Congress leaders and workers defaced the entire road stretch from Malad to Bandra Sea Link by putting up banners welcoming their vice president Rahul Gandhi to the city on Friday.

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Posters of Rahul Gandhi along the Western Express Highway near Bandra on Friday
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Did the Congress violate a Bombay High Court (HC) order that bans posters and banners by political parties and organisations?

Enthusiastic Congress leaders and workers defaced the entire road stretch from Malad to Bandra Sea Link by putting up banners welcoming their vice president Rahul Gandhi to the city on Friday.

The Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), which is supposed to ensure that the HC order is not violated, played a different game.

It allowed the banners while Rahul Gandhi was passing by and later removed them at a few places.

The BMC itself was in the dock last week when it had put up awareness banners for the Swachh Bharat Mission. It had to later remove all of them.

Pallavi Darade, additional municipal commissioner and Rajendra Vale, deputy municipal commissioner and other BMC officials did not respond to dna's calls and text messages.

On Friday morning, Congress workers used all the street light poles on both sides of the road to put up banners.
Civic activist Aftab Siddique, who is fighting the case in HC, said that the licence department of the BMC is supposed to submit an action taken report till January 26, 2016 on banners and posters defacing city.

"I am not aware of other areas but I must admit that, by evening, all banners were removed, at least from H - West ward up to Sea Link. But the BMC is bound to file an FIR against the chief of the political party which has put up the banners. Has the BMC done that? In this case, FIRs should be registered against the Mumbai Congress president and the Maharashtra Congress president," said Siddique.

He said that that there is an event on Sunday also. The Congress will put up banners during night. "So the BMC should post staff on night duty to keep vigil or remove the banners or seize them," said Siddique.

Another civic activist from Andheri said that there is no point in removing the banners after the event. "The purpose of the political party is achieved and it will get away scot-free. No one will register an FIR. Then the BMC will have to spend money on labourers and machinery to remove the banners from its own pocket."

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