Congress penalized for defacing Bangalore

The Congress party in Karnataka has been penalized by the Bangalore City Corporation for defacing the City by erecting a large number of posters and cut-outs during Congress President Sonia Gandhi’s visit last Sunday.

After assessing the full extent of violations, the Bangalore City Corporation has sent a notice to the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) for payment of Rs 1.3 million as penalty.

The Joint Commissioner of Bangalore City Corporation Nagaraj told reporters that the party had put up thousands of posters and banners in addition to the permitted limit. The violations had occurred largely on the stretch of road leading to the venue of Sonia Gandhi’s rally in Palace Grounds from the Bangalore airport.

Congress President Sonia Gandhi addressed a mammoth rally in Bangalore last Sunday to mark the merger of former Deputy Chief Minister Siddaramaiah-led All India Progressive Janata Dal (AIPJD) with the Congress.

The enthusiastic Congress workers had virtually flooded the City with banners, posters and larger-than-life-size cut-outs of the party President in various parts of Bangalore.

Bangalore City Corporation authorities said the Congress party had agreed to pay the penalty for violating rules and putting up publicity material in addition to sanctioned limit.