Read Time: 06 minutes

Justice Devan Ramachandran of the Kerala High Court has ordered removal of all unauthorised flag posts in the State within a period of 10 days. “The situation is alarming because, even by a very conservative estimate, the number of flag posts are a mind boggling 42337,” the Court remarked.

The petition filed by the Mannam Sugar Mills Cooperative Limited sought permission to remove illegal flagpoles put upon the mill property.

Amazed by the number of unauthorized flagpoles across the state, according to a report submitted by Additional Chief Secretary, the Court showed stated that:

“Going by the inputs available to this Court, I will not be surprised if none of them have obtained any permission under the applicable statues; and if that be so, none of them could have been installed at the places where they are presently found, namely on road margins and even on the pedestrian paths.”

“The situation is alarming because, even by a very conservative estimate, the number of flag posts are a mind boggling 42, 337, which I am certain would not be the accurate figure, if an exhaustive enumeration is done perhaps it may be even double this or more than that,” the Court further observed.

According to NDTV, the highest number of flag poles have been put up in Palakkad (5,159) and Kannur (5,064).

Justice Ramachandran in a previous order had termed the current phenomenon as ‘lawlessness’ and said that it ‘has to be stopped’.

He had ordered the state to perform an audit and survey of the illegal flag masts across the length and breadth of the state. "Today across Ernakulam a political party's flags are up. They are in power. Who are they challenging? Are they challenging the High Court?" the court had asked.

The State’s advocate submitted that the Government is looking into this issue very seriously and asked for ten days-time to submit a plan of action. He also added that if the flag masts and posts have been installed and erected without due permissions, necessary action against them will become warranted under various statutes.

Thus the Court ordered that in consonance with the previous order no new illegal flag masts or flag posts will be allowed to be erected in any part of the State.

Further, with regards to flag posts already on the public spaces and streets, the Court ordered that action should be taken under every applicable law against the perpetrators, unless they remove the flag posts on their own within ten days.

The Court ordered maximum publicity of the order for the citizens in the wrong to abide by the order.

The matter is posted for November 25.

Cause Title: Mannam Sugar Mills Cooperative Ltd v. Deputy Superintendant of Police