Sir,

It’s not even a year since District in-Charge Minister Dr. H.C. Mahadevappa inaugurated one of the iconic elephant sculpture fountains at Maulana Abul Kalam Azad Circle, popularly known as ‘Highway Circle,’ and already it has been subjected to repeated vandalism by political parties and private associations.

Just two months ago in April a political party vandalised the beautiful Circle by tying its party flags on the delicate trunk of the elephant sculpture.  Yesterday a private association also disfigured the statue by pasting posters on the pedestal.

It is unfortunate that our leaders and people do not know how to respect and appreciate public art installations, but what is the Mysuru City Corporation (MCC) doing?

Though the Circle is being maintained by Brigade Group, which gifted this sculpture with the fountain costing Rs. 40 lakh to our city, it is the responsibility of MCC to see that such vandalism does not recur which mars the beauty of this Heritage City.

I hope the MCC will penalise people who vandalise public property; only then will they stop destroying them. Now, will the MCC at least fine the association whose poster is still stuck on the sculpture?

– Venkata Murthy, Camp: Bengaluru, 26.6.2017

NOTE: For social order the time-tested remedy is punishment for every crime, both as a deterrent and warning to the person or persons who committed that crime. What we see in the Elephant Circle is a social crime. The ancient Mesopotamian King Hammurabi was the first ruler who ordered ‘an eye for an eye and a jaw for a jaw’. Now we have Jesus Christ’s peace mantra and also Human Rights watch. So we should at least have punishment for this kind of vandalism by way of Hefty Fine (above Rs. 5,000) and recover cost of removing those posters and buntings from the culprits.

– KBG, Editor-in-Chief

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