SC nod for dance bars in Maharashtra with riders

After the Supreme Court’s verdict paved the way for the reopening of dance bars in Maharashtra, the BJP-led state government is considering bringing an ordinance to stop their operations. The apex court also set aside some provisions of a 2016 law imposing restrictions on licensing and functioning of dance bars. The order marks the latest round in the tussle between the top court and the Maharashtra government, which has been trying to shut down dance bars for nearly 15 years now.

Senior minister Sudhir Mungantiwar said, “In the interest of people and for saving the cultural fabric of the state, we will not hesitate in bringing an ordinance to stop dance bars”.

However, the Bharatiya Bar Girls’ union president Varsha Kale, who has been fighting for the cause of bar dancers, termed the apex court ruling as a great “victory”.

Retired Bombay High Court Judge F.I. Rebello, who had in 2006 struck down the ban imposed by the government on operation of dance bars, said the SC has rightly quashed the unreasonable restrictions imposed on such outlets.

“The government has been trying since long to not implement the judgement (given by him as HC judge). “It keeps coming up with new and archaic restrictions which stifle a person’s freedom to carry out a profession of his choice within the ambit of law,” Justice Rebello said. It is very unfortunate for the government to keep interfering with a citizen’s right to conduct his business, he maintained.