Illegal hoardings: HC seeks action taken report from BMC

The Bombay High Court today directed the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation to state what action it took since March this year against the illegal hoardings in the city.
The division bench of Chief Justice Mohit Shah and Justice M S Sanklecha was hearing a petition filed by social worker Bhagwanji Rayani seeking a direction to all the municipal corporations and councils to implement the March 2013 order of the High Court.
The court had directed the civic authorities to remove illegal hoardings within a day, and ensure in future that no hoardings were put up without permission.
Rayani contends that BMC and other authorities have failed to act, and hoardings have once again mushroomed.

"There were numerous hoardings during the Ganesh festival and now the Dussehra festival is coming up. The civic body should not just remove the hoardings but also recover cost and prosecute the political parties which put up these hoardings," Rayani argued today.
BMC lawyer S M Modale said he would submit an action taken report tomorrow.
In March, the division bench headed by Justice A M Khanwilkar had taken suo motu (on its own) notice of the illegal hoardings.
"Everywhere we are seeing hoardings defacing the city's skyline. Majority of these banners are of political parties. The municipal commissioners, by not initiating action against such illegal hoardings, is becoming a co-conspirator in the offence," the court had said.