Take down illegal election banners: Bombay High Court to civic bodies

The Bombay High Court has directed civic bodies in the state to undertake a special drive to pull down any illegal political hoardings or banners that may come up during the state elections.

"On account of elections there is a possibility that hoardings and banners may be put up without taking proper permission. The authority should act against these illegal hoardings/banners," a division bench of judges Abhay Oka and Girish Kulkarni said.

The judges gave the order while hearing a public interest petition filed by Suswarajya Foundation that described the problem of illegal political banners and posters.

Maharashtra Navnirman Sena general secretary Bala Nandgaonkar gave an undertaking to the court that his party would not put up hoardings and banners. The Bharatiya Janata Party, Nationalist Congress Party and Republican Party of India (Athavale) gave similar undertakings.

During a previous hearing, the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation had informed the court that last year it had removed about 30,000 posters, 24,000 of them political hoardings. In 2012 it took down about 63,000 posters, of which 56,000 were political banners.

Advocate Uday Warunjikar, counsel for the foundation, submitted to the court that no matter how many drives the corporation carried out, the menace of illegal posters would not be curbed until political parties were held responsible.