Deputy Commissioners told to remove flex banners put up along State and national highways.

With the announcement of elections to the State
Legislative Assembly on May 5, Bruhat Bangalore Mahanagara Palike (BBMP)
and authorities in all districts are waging a battle against banners,
hoardings, cut-outs and posters of political parties and leaders, as
directed by the office of the Chief Electoral Officer.

Special teams

BBMP
has formed teams for removing cut-outs, hoardings, banners and posters
of political parties on Thursday night, said CEO Anil Kumar Jha. Nearly a
hundred truckloads of cut-outs and banners were removed in the BBMP
limits on Thursday and Friday. “If removed cut-outs and banners are
erected again, we will file criminal cases against such sponsors of
banners,” BBMP officials told
The Hindu
.

The Election Commission has also banned defacement
of public properties. No wall writing, pasting of posters/papers or
defacement in any other form, or erecting/displaying of cut-outs,
hoardings, banners flags would be permitted on any government premises
during the enforcement of code of conduct.

BBMP has
formed division-wise teams to remove all kinds of posters and banners.
Executive engineers, assistant executive engineers have been given the
task of removing all hoardings. All removed hoardings have been stored
at zonal offices of the BBMP, officials said. The Deputy Commissioners,
who are Returning Officers, have been instructed to take steps to remove
all flex printing materials and colourful banners erected on the
roadsides on national and State highways, district and taluk
headquarters. Banners have been put out to highlight the government’s
achievements or performance of the candidates during the last five
years, officials sources said.

BBMP Commissioner
Siddaiah held a meeting with CEO and discussed various steps taken by
the civic body to ensure implementation of model code of conduct.

Not all are down

Despite
strict warning by the CEO, cut-outs, posters and banners of contesting
candidates were found on Friday in several places in Govindarajanagar,
Vijayanagar, Rajajinagar and Mahalakshmi Layout Assembly constituencies
in Bangalore. In fact, new hoardings and banners were found in the
Govindiarajanagar constituency after announcement of elections to the
Assembly, said a trader in Vijayanagar.