The Bruhat Bengaluru Mahanagara Palike (BBMP) on Monday, August 21, imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on Deputy Chief Minister DK Shivakumar, who is also the Congress president in Karnataka. This fine was levied as a penalty for the installation of an unauthorised banner outside the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee (KPCC) office, on Queen’s Road in Bengaluru.
The banner, which features images of numerous Congress party leaders, was erected by the KPCC’s backward classes wing to commemorate the birth anniversaries of former Prime Minister Rajiv Gandhi and former Chief Minister D Devaraj Urs.
The BBMP authorities said that a team led by an Assistant Revenue Officer (ARO) from the Vasanth Nagar sub-division removed the unauthorised banner situated outside the KPCC office and imposed a fine of Rs 50,000 on DK Shivakumar.
Shivakumar had recently said that strict action would be taken by the BBMP against those who put up illegal flex posters, buntings, and hoardings in Bengaluru. According to the new regulations, each violation involving illegal posters and hoardings incurs a fine of Rs 50,000.
An official notice from the ARO stated, "No official permission has been secured from the Palike for the placement of banners on the specified property. Consequently, a fine of Rs 50,000 has been imposed on the president of the Karnataka Pradesh Congress Committee. It is hereby directed that this amount be remitted to the bank account of the BBMP chief commissioner."