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Hindustan Times
5 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Do not use names of living personalities in govt ads: Madras HC
The Madras high court has said that political parties cannot use names or images of any living personality, including chief ministers and ideological leaders, as well as party insignia or symbols, in government advertisements for welfare schemes. Do not use names of living personalities in govt ads: Madras HC A bench of chief justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and justice Sunder Mohan barred the inclusion of 'the name of any living personality, photographs of former chief ministers or ideological leaders,' and 'party symbols, emblems, or flags of political parties,' including those of the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, in advertisements for government welfare schemes. The bench passed the order on July 31 while hearing a petition filed by AIADMK Member of Parliament C Ve Shanmugam, who had sought an injunction against the DMK government's use of chief minister MK Stalin's name and image, as well as the images of other DMK leaders, in the State's public grievance redressal scheme 'Mudhalvarin Mugavari.' Senior counsel Vijay Narayan, who appeared for Shanmugam, told the court that using the chief minister's name and party images in a state-funded scheme violated Supreme Court directives and the Government Advertisement (Content Regulation) Guidelines, 2014. The court said that the use of such references in state-sponsored promotions did 'prima facie' violate multiple apex court rulings, including the latter's clarification issued in 2016 on the review petition filed in the case of State of Karnataka vs Common Cause. In such order, the Supreme Court had clarified that while the photograph of an incumbent chief minister may be used in official government advertisements, photographs of ideological leaders or former chief ministers will prima facie violate its earlier directives aimed at curbing political misuse of public funds, the high court said. 'It would not be permissible to mention the name of the living political personality in the nomenclature of the government scheme. Moreover, using the name of any ruling political party, its insignia/logo/emblem/flag also appears to be prima facie against the directives of the Supreme Court and the Election Commission of India,' the high court said. It said that keeping in mind the above, it was passing an 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 respondent No.4 (DMK) shall not be included.' Opposing the plea, the state's counsel, Advocate General P S Raman, had argued that the petition relied on unauthenticated materials such as unofficial printouts, which did not represent official government publications. Raman assured the court that the government had not used the photographs of any political leaders or party symbols in its promotional materials and requested time to file a detailed affidavit along with authentic records. Senior advocate P Wilson, who was representing the DMK, told the court the petition was politically motivated. Wilson pointed out that the petitioner belonged to the opposition and alleged that the plea was an attempt to 'malign' the ruling party's image 'under the guise of public interest.' While recording that the State denied the petitioner's claims, the court emphasised the importance of adhering to the legal framework governing government publicity. The Bench said it was 'inclined to pass an interim order' given the petitioner's apprehension that more such schemes were in the pipeline. However, the court clarified that its present order did not interfere with the actual launch or implementation of any welfare scheme. 'We have not passed any order against launching, implementation or operation of welfare schemes of the government,' the bench said. The court also made it clear that the pendency of the petition will not restrain the Election Commission of India or other competent authorities from taking action on the basis of the petitioner's complaint. The court is likely to hear the matter further on August 13.
Hindustan Times
6 days ago
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Do not use name of living personalities in govt ads: Madras HC
Bengaluru The Madras high court has said that political parties cannot use names or images of any living personality, including chief ministers and ideological leaders, as well as party insignia or symbols, in government advertisements for welfare schemes. Do not use name of living personalities in govt ads: Madras HC A bench of Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice Sunder Mohan barred the inclusion of 'the name of any living personality, photographs of former chief ministers or ideological leaders,' and 'party symbols, emblems, or flags of political parties,' including those of the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu, in advertisements for government welfare schemes. The bench passed the order on July 31 while hearing a petition filed by AIADMK Member of Parliament C Ve Shanmugam, who had sought an injunction against the DMK government's use of Chief Minister MK Stalin's name and image, as well as the images of other DMK leaders, in the State's public grievance redressal scheme 'Mudhalvarin Mugavari.' Senior counsel Vijay Narayan, who appeared for Shanmugam, told the court that using the chief minister's name and party images in a state-funded scheme violated Supreme Court directives and the Government Advertisement (Content Regulation) Guidelines, 2014. The court said that the use of such references in state-sponsored promotions did 'prima facie' violate multiple apex court rulings, including the latter's clarification issued in 2016 on the review petition filed in the case of State of Karnataka vs Common Cause. In such order, the Supreme Court had clarified that while the photograph of an incumbent chief minister may be used in official government advertisements, photographs of ideological leaders or former chief ministers will prima facie violate its earlier directives aimed at curbing political misuse of public funds, the high court said. 'It would not be permissible to mention the name of the living political personality in the nomenclature of the government scheme. Moreover, using the name of any ruling political party, its insignia/logo/emblem/flag also appears to be prima facie against the directives of the Supreme Court and the Election Commission of India,' the high court said. It said that keeping in mind the above, it was passing an 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 respondent No.4 (DMK) shall not be included.' Opposing the plea, the state's counsel, Advocate General P S Raman, had argued that the petition relied on unauthenticated materials such as unofficial printouts, which did not represent official government publications. Raman assured the court that the government had not used the photographs of any political leaders or party symbols in its promotional materials and requested time to file a detailed affidavit along with authentic records. Senior advocate P Wilson, who was representing the DMK, told the court the petition was politically motivated. Wilson pointed out that the petitioner belonged to the opposition and alleged that the plea was an attempt to 'malign' the ruling party's image 'under the guise of public interest.' While recording that the State denied the petitioner's claims, the court emphasised the importance of adhering to the legal framework governing government publicity. The Bench said it was 'inclined to pass an interim order' given the petitioner's apprehension that more such schemes were in the pipeline. However, the court clarified that its present order did not interfere with the actual launch or implementation of any welfare scheme. 'We have not passed any order against launching, implementation or operation of welfare schemes of the government,' the bench said. The court also made it clear that the pendency of the petition will not restrain the Election Commission of India or other competent authorities from taking action on the basis of the petitioner's complaint. The court is likely to hear the matter further on August 13.
Indian Express
6 days ago
- Politics
- Indian Express
Tamil Nadu govt can't name welfare schemes after living persons or use party symbols, High Court says
The Madras High Court on Friday restrained the Tamil Nadu government from naming any new or rebranded public schemes after living persons. The court also barred the use of portraits of ideological figures or former chief ministers, and any insignia or emblem of the ruling DMK, in government advertisements promoting such schemes. The First Division Bench, comprising Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice Sunder Mohan, delivered the order while hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) petition filed by AIADMK MP C Ve Shanmugam. The petitioner had sought a ban on the state's use of Chief Minister M K Stalin's name in public outreach programmes such as Ungaludan Stalin (With You, Stalin) and Mudhalvarin Mugavari (Chief Minister's Address), which he claimed violated judicial guidelines and the Election Commission's code. Shanmugam's counsel, senior advocate Vijay Narayan, argued that 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' affiliated with the ruling party. He further alleged that even the 'party logo/emblem is being printed in the outreach programmes' — a move he said was 'legally impermissible' and in direct contravention of Supreme Court rulings and the Government Advertisement (Content Regulation) Guidelines, 2014. In its order, the High Court said, '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 cited previous Supreme Court rulings in Common Cause v Union of India and State of Karnataka v Common Cause, reminding that while publication of a sitting Chief Minister's photograph may be allowed under certain exceptions, 'the use of photographs of ideological leaders or former Chief Ministers, prima facie, would be against the directives of the Supreme Court'. The court said, 'It would not be permissible to mention the name of the living political personality in the nomenclature of the government scheme. Moreover, using the name of any ruling political party, its insignia/logo/emblem/flag also appears to be prima facie against the directives of the Supreme Court and the Election Commission of India.' Tamil Nadu Advocate General P S Raman opposed the plea, calling it premature and based on unauthenticated printouts. He contended that the materials cited by the petitioner 'are not government publications at all' and that no such names or symbols were officially being used. Raman sought time to submit affidavits with the actual documents. Senior counsel P Wilson, appearing for the DMK, dismissed the petition as 'politically motivated', noting that the petitioner is an Opposition MP and accusing him of attempting to malign the ruling party and its leaders. While issuing its interim directive, the Bench clarified that it had 'not passed any order against launching, implementation or operation of any welfare scheme of the government'. The order is confined to nomenclature and publicity materials. The judges also said that 'pendency of this petition shall not come in the way of the Election Commission of India…initiating any proceeding on the basis of the complaint made by the petitioner'. The court directed all respondents, including the Election Commission, the Tamil Nadu government, and the DMK, to file counter affidavits and listed the case for further hearing on August 13, alongside a similar petition filed by another individual.
NDTV
6 days ago
- Politics
- NDTV
Tamil Nadu Barred From Using Names Of Living Leaders For State Schemes
Chennai: The Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu government to refrain from naming welfare schemes after living political personalities or using photographs of former Chief Ministers or ideological leaders in government publicity material. The court's ruling came in response to a public interest litigation filed by AIADMK MP CV Shanmugam. The bench, comprising Chief Justice Manindra Mohan Shrivastava and Justice Sunder Mohan, cited Supreme Court directives and content guidelines for government advertisements. The judges ruled that while the use of the incumbent Chief Minister's photograph -- MK Stalin -- is permitted as per the top court's 2016 clarification, including images of late leaders or party insignia such as flags or emblems is prima facie impermissible. The court also barred the use of any living political leader's name in the nomenclature of government schemes. Recently, the Tamil Nadu government had launched an outreach programme "UNGALUDAN STALIN" or 'Stalin With You', incorporating the Chief Minister's name. The state government had also scheduled to launch a similarly named health programme tomorrow. Petitioner CV Shanmugam, represented by Senior Counsel Vijay Narayan, argued that the state was misusing public funds to promote political personalities by embedding their identities into welfare schemes. He contended this violated the Supreme Court's rulings in the Common Cause cases and the Government Advertisement (Content Regulation) Guidelines, 2014. While the state government denied the claims-stating that the cited pamphlets were unauthentic and not officially, the court held that any such material containing politically symbolic visuals would violate legal norms. Importantly, the High Court clarified it was not stopping the government from implementing welfare schemes, only the manner in which they are publicised. The matter is scheduled for further hearing on August 13.
India Today
6 days ago
- Politics
- India Today
Madras High Court restrains Tamil Nadu from naming schemes after MK Stalin
The Madras High Court has directed the Tamil Nadu government not to use the name of the Chief Minister or his photograph in publicity material related to government welfare schemes, pulling up the DMK administration over its choice of nomenclature for publicly funded court was hearing a petition filed by AIADMK MP CV Shanmugam, who sought a ban on the use of former Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's image and the name 'Ungaludan Stalin' (translated as 'Stalin with You') in government schemes and their petitioner contended that naming the scheme after the incumbent Chief Minister was in violation of Supreme Court rulings and the Government Advertisement (Content Regulation) Guidelines, 2014. Citing schemes such as 'Ungaludan Stalin' and 'Nalam Kaakum Stalin Thittam', which carry the Chief Minister's name, the petition argued that such branding created undue political mileage at the expense of the public exchequer.'Mentioning the name of the incumbent Chief Minister in the nomenclature of the scheme and all such pictorial representations is in violation of various judicial pronouncements of the Hon'ble Supreme Court as also violative of Government Advertisement (Content Regulation) Guidelines, 2014,' the petition on behalf of the Tamil Nadu government, senior advocate and Rajya Sabha MP P Wilson termed the petition politically motivated and ill-founded, aimed at tarnishing the image of the ruling party and its questioned the selective targeting of the scheme's name, asking, 'When government schemes have been named after NaMo (a reference to Prime Minister Narendra Modi) and Amma (used for former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa), why can't there also be Ungaludan Stalin?'The High Court clarified that it was not issuing an order against the implementation of the schemes themselves but only objected to their nomenclature and promotional content that included names or images of living personalities. The court observed that government welfare initiatives funded by public money should remain politically neutral in presentation.- Ends IN THIS STORY#Tamil Nadu
