Party flags on vehicles only during polls: HC

Party flags on vehicles only during polls: HC

K.Kaushik@timesgroup.com

Madurai:10.09.2021

Madras high court has observed that the purpose of having party flags or designation boards or portraits of party/communal leaders or advocate/press stickers is only to prevent the police from stopping the vehicles and to flout the law. Taking into account the report submitted by the DGP and transport officials in this regard, a division bench of Justice N Kirubakaran (since retired) and Justice B Pugalendhi observed that fixing of flags of any nature is not authorized by law and is illegal.

The court referred to an incident where police found huge quantity of ganja in a car with advocate sticker about three years ago in Theni. “It has become an order of the day in the state that almost 50% of the vehicles either have party flags or designation boards or portraits of party/communal leaders or advocate/press stickers. This menace has to be addressed, failing which the criminal activities will continue to be committed by the above modus operandi.”

The judges observed that as stated by the DGP, the police may face difficulties while discharging their duties as they may hesitate to stop and check such vehicles as the people travelling in them enter into heated arguments, resulting in law and order problems.

The court said vehicle owners may be permitted to fix party flags on their vehicles during elections if they are involved in election works for any political party. At other times, no one except constitutional authorities has got any right to do so. They directed the authorities to instruct owners of vehicles to remove such portraits within 60 days, failing which the authorities shall remove the same and impose fines on the vehicles.

The judges also issued a series of directions to the authorities to ensure that lights and number plates were fixed in vehicles according to Motor Vehicles Act and Rules. The court passed the order while disposing of a PIL filed by V Ramesh, an advocate from Madurai district who sought actions against the misuse of advocate stickers in vehicles.