Oppn accuses govt of weakening case to help dance bar owners

The Congress and NCP slammed the BJP-led Maharashtra government Thursday after the Supreme Court quashed certain restrictions on dance bars, claiming the government's "nexus" with bar owners weakened its case.

The two parties alleged that the Devendra Fadnavis government deliberately took a soft stand on the issue in the apex court, a charge the BJP denied.

The Supreme Court on Thursday paved the way for reopening of dance bars in Maharashtra by setting aside some provisions of a 2016 law imposing restrictions on their licensing and functioning.

"It is the nexus of BJP leaders, the chief minister and bar owners' association which has led to the order," NCP national spokesperson Nawab Malik alleged.

"We will go to the people with this issue and we will again ban dance bars after our party comes to power," he said.

Malik alleged that meetings were held between Fadnavis and bar owners' association at the latter's official residence 'Varsha', leading to "weakening" of the government's position before the apex court. The party, however, did not specify when the meeting took place.

Senior NCP leader and Leader of Opposition in the Legislative Council Dhananjay Munde asked the government to take immediate legal steps to ensure that dance bars do not resume operating.

State Congress general secretary Sachin Sawant too accused the government of colluding with dance bar owners.

"We would like to ask what is the nexus between the government and dance bar owners. The BJP should also answer how much funds it has received for elections," Sawant said.

Fadnavis, when in opposition, was vocal against dance bars, he said.

"The BJP should now tell if it wants to ruin the lives of young men and women by allowing dance bars to reopen," the Congress leader said.

State Congress chief Ashok Chavan said the government conspired to facilitate reopening of dance bars "through the backdoor".

The BJP-led government failed to present its case effectively, he said, asking how much "funds" has the government collected.

Dance bar owners had contributed to the chief minister's relief fund in 2016 which made their proximity to the government evident, he claimed.

Leader of Opposition in the Assembly Radhakrishna Vikhe Patil said the former home minister R R Patil took the decision to ban dance bars as part of social commitment, but the BJP government was not serious in enforcing it.

State BJP chief spokesperson Madhav Bhandari rejected the allegation that the government was hands in glove with dance bar owners.

"Grant of conditional permission to allow young women to dance in bars is Supreme Court's decision. The state government did make efforts and cited several instances in support of the law to ban dance bars. We have to respect the court's decision now," he said.

"The Congress, NCP and some Left organisations seem to have no respect for the court's judgement and are making false allegations," Bhandari added.