Supreme Court orders Maharashtra govt to grant licences to dance bars by March 15

The Supreme Court has modified seven conditions imposed by the Maharashtra Police for granting licences to dance bars in the state.

New Delhi: In a relief for dance bar owners, the Supreme Court on Wednesday modified seven conditions put by the Maharashtra Police for the issuance of licences to hotels and restaurants in Mumbai.

The apex court bench, comprising Justice Dipak Misra and Justice Shiva Kirti Singh, excluded installation of CCTV from restaurants and dance performance place.

The SC also rejected the condition that live CCTV footage of dance performances should be given to area police.

The court, however, said the CCTV can be permitted for security purposes at entrance gate.

Giving three days` time to the owners of the hotels and restaurants to comply with the modified conditions, the apex court bench said competent authorities would issue licences in 10 days and thereafter.

"We are certain that competent authorities will not conceive of anything to stall the grant of licence," the court said and added that the authorities will "comply with the command of this court and not venture to defy it".

The court order came after the Maharashtra government watered down some of the conditions for the grant of dance bar licences.

The petitioner Indian Hotels and Restaurant Association had told the court on February 24 that some of the conditions being imposed for the grant of licence were unreasonable.

On February 24, the court had asked the Maharashtra government to revisit the conditions.