HC orders removal of hoardings, arches from Coimbatore roads

Chennai: The Madras High Court on Thursday directed to remove all hoardings and arches from the roads of Coimbatore, put up in connection with the MGR centenary celebrations on December 3.

The court's intervention came days after a techie died in an accident in Coimbatore.

A DMK MLA had filed a public interest litigation petition (PIL) alleging that the hoardings, arches among others, posed a safety hazard and cited the death of the techie.

The first bench, comprising Chief Justice Indira Banerjee and Justice M Sunder, made it clear that all hoardings, banners and arches lining highways, public streets and pedestrian pavements shall forthwith be removed.

In future too, no such arches, hoardings and banners shall be allowed to be erected in these areas, the bench said while disposing of the PIL.

In his PIL, DMK MLA N Karthick had sought that these structures be declared illegal.

He made the plea while referring to the death of a software engineer on November 25 after being run over by a heavy vehicle.

The accident occurred when he fell down from his two-wheeler after the vehicle allegedly hit a wooden structure erected for the centenary celebrations on the main road.

When the PIL came up on Thursday, Advocate-General Vijay Narayan submitted that all illegal arches, hoardings and banners were being removed.

The MLA, who represents Singanallur constituency in Coimbatore, also prayed for a direction to the government to pay compensation to the family of 32-year-old Raghupathy, who was working in the US and had come to the city on a vacation. He alleged that Raghupathy met with the accident after hitting the wooden structure erected by the AIADMK for setting up a huge decorative arch on the Avinashi Road in connection with the MGR centenary function.

Raghupathy fell down and was run over by an unidentified heavy vehicle, resulting in his death on the spot, the petitioner said, adding those who erected the arch should be brought to book.