Model Code of Conduct in place but ads remain on display in Hyderabad

HYDERABAD:  Even after the Model Code of Conduct (MCC) has come into force following the Election Commission of India (ECI) announcing the schedule for general elections to the Lok Sabha, 2019, a majority of the State government official websites continue to display the photographs of Telangana chief minister, other ministers, MLAs and other elected representatives.

Not one or two, nearly two dozen government departments continue to display photographs of chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, cabinet ministers, MLAs, TRS leaders on their official websites. What is more interesting is that the Women Development, Child Welfare and Disabled Welfare department continue to depict the photograph of former minister, Tummala Nageshwara Rao who lost the seat in the Assembly polls held in November last year, whereas Commissionerate of Industries department continues to show the photograph of former minister K T Rama Rao who is now an MLA and working President of Telangana Rashtra Samiti (TRS).  The MCC guidelines issued by ECI and State Chief Electoral Officer clearly mentioned that all references of Ministers including the prime minister, chief minister, politicians or political parties available on central or state government websites have to be removed immediately.

Further, the State government and its District Election Officers (DEOs) have been issued instructions to take immediate action to remove or hide the photographs of any political functionary from official websites. The government departments that continue to show the said pictures include Roads and Buildings, Telangana Tourism, Telangana Endowments department, Sports Authority of Telangana state, Telangana Department of Labour, Telangana Fisheries Department, etc. Chief Electoral Officer, Telangana, Rajat Kumar told Express those government departments whose official websites are found with the photographs would be dealt seriously for violation of MCC code.