Madras High Court bars use of former CMs' photos, party symbols in welfare schemes
A bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice Sunder Mohan also barred the government from naming or rebranding schemes after living persons, according to The Indian Express.
The court delivered the order on Thursday while hearing a public interest litigation by All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam MP C Ve Shanmugam.
Shanmugam had sought directions to stop the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam government in Tamil Nadu from using Chief Minister MK Stalin's name in public outreach programmes, such as Ungaludan Stalin (With You, Stalin), and Mudhalvarin Mugavari (chief minister's Address).
The AIADMK MP claimed this violated Supreme Court guidelines and the Government Advertisement (Content Regulation) Guidelines, 2014.
These government-funded welfare programmes featured 'the name of the incumbent chief minister in the nomenclature of the scheme' and included 'pictorial representations/photographs of certain ideological leaders and former chief ministers' linked to the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Shanmugam's counsel, Vijay Narayan, was quoted as telling the High Court by The Indian Express.
On the other hand, the advocate appearing for the Tamil Nadu government told the court that the material presented before the court is 'not government publications at all'.
'We are inclined to pass an interim order to the effect that while launching and operating government welfare schemes through various advertisements, the name of any living personality, photograph of any former chief minister/ideological leaders or party insignia/emblem/flag of (DMK) shall not be included,' the court said in its order.
The bench also held that including the names of political leaders in the name of a government scheme is not allowed, reported Bar and Bench.
The matter will be heard next on August 13.
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