Mamata Sharma for certain guidelines in dance bars

Hours after the Supreme Court ruled that dance bars can re-open in Mumbai, National Commission for Women (NCW) chairperson Mamata Sharma on Tuesday said that the state government needs to ensure that CCTV cameras are installed for strict surveillance in the bars to check the crime.

"There have to be certain guidelines in place for bar girls to work. I also think that government control is necessary as at times there are reports of prostitution. The government should step in and ensure that surveillance cameras, CCTV's are installed so that girls aren't ill-treated by customers," she said.

Meanwhile, Congress leader Sajjan Singh Verma expressed his displeasure over the apex court's verdict, and said that such dances send wrong messages to the youth and corrupts their brain.

"It is sad news for the country today. When a state government doesn't want dance bars to operate in a bid to save the young generation from deviating and seeing such shameful dance performances of bar girls. I don't think such a decision should have come off," said Verma.

"The Supreme Court should have taken the points put forth by the state government. However, no one can raise a finger on the decision of the Supreme Court," he added.

In a major decision that will impact hundreds of dance bars and thousands of women who worked in them, the Supreme Court earlier in the day struck down Maharashtra government's decision to ban dance bars.

The ban, enforced by the Maharashtra Government in August 2005, was struck down by the Bombay High Court in 2006, but the state government had filed an appeal in the Supreme Court.