NEW DELHI: Private companies which use photographs of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi in advertisements may soon face a fine of Rs 2 lakh, against the Rs 500 fine allowed under the current law.
The Ministry of Consumer Affairs has also recommended a fine of Rs 5 lakh for repeat offenders. The proposal will be sent to Ministry of Law and Justice for further consultations before it is presented before the Cabinet.
“In case a company repeatedly violates the law, we have also suggested imprisonment of six months alongwith the fine,” a ministry official said. Last year, Reliance Jio and Paytm had to apologise for using Modi’s photograph in their advertisements without permission, following notices sent by the ministry under the Emblems and Names (Prevention of Improper Use) Act of 1950, which bars use of Prime Minister’s name and picture for commercial use. According to the Section 3 of the Act, no person shall use or continue to use any name or emblem for the purpose of any trade, business, calling or profession without the previous permission of the central government.
The law provides that “any person who contravenes the provisions of Section 3 shall be punishable with fine, which may exceed to Rs 500”. This meager amount encouraged advertisers to blatantly misuse the Prime Minister’s image. For instance, the morning after Modi announced demonetisation on November 8 last year, Paytm released an advertisement with his photograph welcoming the decision and urged public to start using its digital wallet service. Whether the proposed law will also apply to items like gold rakhis with Modi’s image currently being sold in Gujarat for Rs 50,000 each remains to be seen.