VIJAYAWADA: A public interest litigation (PIL) has been filed in the Andhra Pradesh High Court on Tuesday, challenging the display of Deputy Chief Minister Pawan Kalyan’s photographs alongside those of Chief Minister N Chandrababu Naidu in government offices.
The PIL will come up for hearing before a bench led by Chief Justice Dhiraj Singh Thakur on Wednesday.
The petitioner, Yemu Kondala Rao, a retired railway employee, contended that displaying photographs of individuals who do not hold constitutional posts is unconstitutional.
He urged the court to direct the state government to remove Pawan Kalyan’s photos from government offices and to restrain their display until a clear policy is framed on the matter.
The PIL names the Chief Secretary of the General Administration Department (GAD), the Director of Information and Public Relations, and the GAD Deputy Secretary as respondents, apart from Pawan Kalyan in his personal capacity.
In his petition, Kondala Rao pointed out that under the Right to Information Act, the government itself confirmed that no specific rules exist regarding the display of portraits in government offices.
He also highlighted that there are no directives mandating the display of Chief Minister or Deputy Chief Minister photographs. Despite this, he alleged, photos of Pawan Kalyan, who holds a non-constitutional position as Deputy CM, are being put up in offices.
The petitioner stressed that the Constitution does not recognise the post of Deputy Chief Minister - it only provides for the appointment of the Chief Minister and other ministers. Citing Supreme Court rulings, he added that political leaders cannot misuse public funds to enhance their personal image.