The Telangana Prevention of Disfigurement of Open Places and Prohibition of Obscene and Objectionable Posters and Advertisements Act, 1997
The Telangana Prevention of Disfigurement of Open Places and Prohibition of Obscene and Objectionable Posters and Advertisements Act, 1997
This law applies across Telangana to anyone printing, publishing, or displaying advertisements and posters visible to the public. It prohibits putting up advertisements on public or private property without written permission from the owner, as well as displaying objectionable content that incites violence, outrages religious feelings, or promotes obscenity, particularly regarding cinema posters. Authorities have the power to seize, destroy, or remove offending material and penalize violators with fines or imprisonment. This legislation matters because it preserves public aesthetics, protects property rights against unauthorized defacement, and maintains public decency and harmony by preventing inflammatory or inappropriate visual content in shared spaces.
- 1. Short title, extent and commencement.
- 2. Definitions.
- 3. Penalty for disfigurement by objectionable advertisements.
- 4. Penalty for unauthorised disfigurement by advertisements.
- 5. Punishment of abetters.
- 6. Power to remove, erase, pull down and destroy objectionable advertisements.
- 7. Obscene Poster.
- 8. Prohibiting of printing, publishing or displaying obscene posters.
- 9. Constitution of Authority for determination of questions relating to obscenity of poster.
- 10. Penalty.
- 11. Power to make search and seizure.
- 12. Forfeiture
- 13. Compounding of offences
- 14. Offences by companies
- 15. Certain offences to be cognizable
- 16. Cognizance of offences
- 17. Protection of action taken in good faith
- 18. Burden of proof in certain cases
- 19. Power to issue directions
- 20. Act to override other laws
- 22. Power to make rules
PDF: pending for this language.