The Supreme Court had ruled that only the photos of the President, Prime Minister and Chief Justice of India could be used in government ads.
A ban on the photos of Chief Ministers in government ads may be revoked. The Supreme Court has today agreed to reconsider its earlier verdict which said only photos of the Prime Minister, President and Chief Justice of India are permitted in publicity funded by taxpayers.
The decision to reconsider its verdict of May is based on an appeal from four states - Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, West Bengal and Assam - none of which are governed by the BJP, which is in power at the Centre.
The Supreme Court will hear the case next on October 13.
The four states who want the ban rescinded say like the PM, the Chief Minister is an elected head of government and should therefore feature in ads that highlight the government's policies or accomplishments.
The Supreme Court's order in May was based on on petitions filed by NGOs, including that of lawyer-activist Prashant Bhushan, which said taxpayers' money was being spent liberally on gaining political mileage.
In recent years, acting on Mr Bhushan's petition, the Supreme Court has cautioned the government to curb excessive spending on publicising its schemes as well as glorifying political leaders with ads placed to mark their birth or death anniversaries.