Cases filed against Punjab cinemas for screening govt's promotional advertisements

Chandigarh : Taking action for violation of the Model Code of Conduct, Punjab Police have registered cases against owners and managers of two cinemas for showcasing promotional advertisements of the state government, a top election official said on Tuesday.

Chief Electoral Officer Sibin C. said that his office received a complaint on April 6 from an RTI activist regarding the violation of the Model Code of Conduct as the promotional video advertisements featuring the Punjab government logo and the Chief Minister are being played in cinemas across the state.

Taking cognisance of the complaint, the CEO sought a report from the Deputy Commissioner of Patiala, under whose jurisdiction the Prime Cinema in Rajpura in the district falls, the Secretary of the Public Relations Department, who issues the releasing order for all government advertisements, and also from all Deputy Commissioners to ascertain the status of display of government advertisements in any of the cinemas in their areas.

The CEO said following this, a notice was issued to Paramjit Singh, Manager of Prime Cinemas, Rajpura, and a flying squad visited the cinema. Thereafter, being a matter primarily related to the display of advertisements in cinema, the case was put up to the Media Certification and Monitoring Committee.

As per the recommendations of the committee, the police, on Monday, lodged cases under Sections 188 and 177 of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) against the owner and managers of Prime Cinema and under Section 188 against representatives of Qube Cinema. He said a report was sent to the Election Commission of India for further directions.