Chennai: The Madras high court has set aside an order of a single judge to the extent that it banned depicting the pictures/photographs of living persons on banners, flex boards and sign boards.
The First Bench comprising Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice R. Hemalalithaa set aside a portion of the order of the single judge dated October 23, 2017, while disposing of an appeal filed by the Chennai corporation.
All other aspects of the order will prevail and the authorities must ensure strict compliance with the Act and rules relating to erection of banners, flex boards and sign boards.
The authorities should also ensure that such banners were not allowed to be placed encroaching the public and private properties, causing obstructions to the traffic and pedestrians. In an attempt to curb the menace of the erection of illegal banners, Justice S. Vaidyanathan had on October 23, passed a blanket order banning the use of pictures of living persons on banners.
The prohibitory order was passed to maintain a clean atmosphere in the state and to avoid unnecessary drawings/paintings on the walls of buildings/residential places, the judge had added.
Contending that though the state was not a party to the proceedings before the single judge, directions were given, the Chennai corporation in its appeal submitted that such a ban would adversely affect the advertisement industry, which primarily used pictures of models (living persons) on their banners, which were erected after obtaining due permission from the authorities concerned.
Single judge order set aside
Justice Vaidyanathan had given the order while disposing of a plea by a city resident seeking a direction to the Chennai corporation commissioner to remove a party board, banner and flag put up in front of her house. The judge had ordered the authorities to ensure that photographs/pictures of living persons were not depicted on banners, flex boards or sign-boards. He had also directed the Tamil Nadu chief secretary to maintain cleanliness in wards of town panchayats and check unnecessary drawings on walls of buildings/ residential places.
