TAPAN BHATTACHARYA Vs. STATE OF M P

JUDGEMENT

(1.) Heard on point of admission, preliminary objections raised by respondents and also I.A. No.2195/2016, which is an application for deleting names of respondents No.1 and 2. This writ petition under Article 226 of the Constitution of India is filed under the category of Public Interest Litigation.

(2.) Subject matter of the petition in brief is that Govt. of Madhya Pradesh publishes textbooks for schools run by the Government within the State. A news item was published in daily newspaper "Prabhat Kiran" on 22.03.2016, in which, it was stated that Government of Madhya Pradesh placed an order for printing 6.5 crores textbooks, out of which, 3 crores have already been printed and published. It is also stated in the same news item that the Chief Minister and the Chief Secretary issued a direction that though the books have already been published message of Chief Minister alongwith his photo should be published in every book giving in detail the views of the Chief Minister and good works he had done. The purpose was that by this message, the Chief Minister would reach to every child of the State.

(3.) The petitioner based his averments on the principles laid down by the Hon'ble Apex Court in case of Common Cause Vs. Union of India, 2015 7 SCC 1, in which, it was held that photographs of President, Vice-President, Prime Minister and Chief Justice of India shall only be published in Govt. advertisement and no other photographs should be published where Govt. exchequer was bearing expenditure of the advertisement. This petition is filed on the premise that unproductive expenditure should be avoided. According to the news item, 3 crore books have already been published and inserting message of the Chief Minister again on these books which have already been published would result in unproductive expenditure. An apprehension is also shown by the petitioner that if such a message is published in the books, in the event of change of Chief Minister, new Chief Minister would again discard all the un-utilised books and republish new books having his message on them and this will set bad precedence for the State. The petitioner also averts that such act on the part of the Chief Minister and the Chief Secretary (respondents No.1 & 2) in this petition is against the principles laid down by the Apex Court in case of Common Cause.