Pictures of Union Ministers, Chief Ministers, Governors and State
Ministers can now appear in government advertisements with the Supreme
Court on Friday modifying its earlier order and allowing their publication.
The verdict came on pleas by Centre and states including poll-bound West
Bengal and Tamil Nadu which had sought a review of the Supreme Court
judgment barring publication of leaders’ photos in advertisements except
those of the President, Prime Minister and the Chief Justice of India,
saying it infringed fundamental rights and federal structure.
“We review our judgement by which we have allowed the publication of
pictures of the President of India and Prime Minister in the government
advertisements. Now we allow the publication of pictures of Union
Ministers of concerned departments, Chief Ministers, Governors and State
Ministers of the concerned departments.
“Rest of the conditions and exceptions will remain as it is,” a bench comprising Justices Ranjan Gogoi and P.C. Ghose said.
The apex court had on March 9 reserved its verdict on the review pleas
in which it was submitted that besides Prime Minister, pictures of
central ministers, chief ministers and others state ministers be allowed
to be carried in public advertisements.
The court had earlier barred publication of photos of leaders in
government advertisements except those of the President, PM and the CJI.
Earlier, Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for the Centre, had
strongly favoured review of the verdict on various grounds including
that if Prime Minister’s photograph is allowed in the advertisements
then the same right should be available to his cabinet colleagues as the
PM is the “first among the equals“.
The AG had also said that the Chief Ministers and their cabinet colleagues too should be allowed to feature in advertisements.
Besides Centre, states of Karnataka, West Bengal, Assam, Tamil Nadu,
Uttar Pradesh, Odisha and Chattisgarh had also sought review of the May
13, 2015 verdict of the apex court.
The Centre, while seeking review, had earlier said
that Article 19 (freedom of speech and expression) of the Indian
Constitution empowers the state and the citizens to “give and receive”
information and it cannot be curtailed and regulated by the courts.
The Attorney General had said if only Prime Minister’s photograph is
allowed in government advertisements then it can be said that it would
promote “personality cult” which has been described as “an anti-thesis
of democracy” by this court only.
Other ministers and the Chief Ministers are also answerable to public
and they cannot remain “faceless”, he had said, adding that the apex
court verdict has dealt with print advertisements only in the time where
electronic and social media are also there.
The Centre had on October 27 last year joined hands with several state
governments in seeking review of the Supreme Court's landmark judgement
on the issue.
Advocate Prashant Bhushan, representing NGO Common Cause which had filed
the original PIL on review petitions filed by the States, had told the
Bench that certain state governments were violating the apex court’s
orders.
On May 13, 2015 the apex court had passed a slew of directions including
the order asking Centre to constitute a three—member committee
“consisting of persons with unimpeachable neutrality and impartiality”
to regulate the issue of public advertisements.
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