The Supreme Court has released the instructions for publication of government advertisements. As per the new guideline, the photographs of the President, Prime Minister and the Chief Justice of India (CJI) are allowed on government advertisements. This has been released to avoid the misuse of public funds for plugging the ruling party and glorifying politicians. A bench headed by Justice Ranjan Gogoi approved the suggestions given by a three-member committee on regulation of public advertisements, barring a few exceptions.

The court said “Photos have the potential of developing personality cult” and also barred the usage of party symbols and flags in ads. As per the rule Chief Ministers and Governors cannot feature in government ads. The Supreme Court has also appointed a three-member committee to ensure that the new guidelines are not violated.

The Supreme Court has given the verdict on the basis of petitions filed by NGOs including  that of  lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan, which said taxpayer’s money was being spent liberally on gaining political mileage.

Tidbits

• Every year more than $500 billion is spent on advertising worldwide.
• India is projected to be the second fastest growing advertising market in Asia, topped only by China.
• David Ogilvy is the Father of Advertising.