BENGALURU: The High Court on Wednesday issued a notice to the principal secretary of the urban development department, Greater Bengaluru Authority (GBA) chief commissioner, the commissioners of all five city corporations and other authorities regarding a PIL challenging the One-Time Opportunity process.
A division bench of Chief Justice Vibhu Bakhru and Justice C M Poonacha passed the order after hearing a public interest litigation (PIL) filed by K Laxmana, a retired government servant and city-based social worker.
The PIL alleged that the electronic displays violated safety norms and environmental regulations, and their owners were misusing the One-Time Opportunity process to convert them into commercial advertisements spaces.
“Declare that Rule 8(7)(vii) of the Greater Bengaluru Area (Advertisement) Rules, 2025, which allows conversion of self-serve electronic or digital advertisement (LED and LCD) hoardings to commercial advertisements through a One-Time Opportunity process, is arbitrary, capricious, unconstitutional, and liable to be struck down,” prayed the petitioner, requesting the court to quash the urban development department’s order dated February 4, 2026, appointing a nodal officer for the implementation of the One-Time Opportunity process.
According to the petitioner, on the directions of the high court in 2018, the then BBMP Council passed the Outdoor Signage and Public Messaging Bye-Laws, 2018, which imposed a complete ban on installation of commercial hoardings in Bengaluru, citing environmental and safety grounds. However, the BBMP continued to grant permissions for self-serve electronic or digital advertisements on private properties under the 2018 Bye-Laws.
These permissions were granted in flagrant violation of the Section 158 of the BBMP Act, 2020, which mandates written permission of the chief commissioner for all advertisements.
Despite advertisement tax arrears totalling Rs 323.12 crore across the erstwhile eight zones of BBMP until 2016, permissions for self-serve electronic or digital advertisements were granted to properties with pending dues.
In addition, these self-serve electronic or digital advertisement boards are now brazenly displaying commercial advertisements for unrelated products and services, amounting to a complete breach of permission conditions, and GBA has failed to take suitable action against such violations, the petition said.
The Greater Bengaluru Area (Advertisement) Rules, 2025, published on January 13, 2026, seek to legitimise these illegal activities through Rule 8(7)(vii), which provides a ‘One Time Opportunity’ for self-serve electronic digital advertisements by way of the implementation of the impugned government order as well as the letter dated February 13, 2026, the petitioner alleged.