Dance bars won’t sway to govt tunes, want SC clarity

MUMBAI: Ahead of permissions to open dance bars, owners are struggling with the government’s proposed conditions such as the one that forces them to deduct a patron’s tips or gifts to a dancer from her salary.
Though three dance bars in the city have received permission from the police to start business, the owners are not going to throw them open anytime soon.
They want the Supreme Court to clarify on “tough” conditions the state government has proposed. Like, only one of three businesses (dance, orchestra or pub) being allowed from a one premises, 11.30pm deadline as against 3 pm allowed for five stars, no liquor service in the dance hall which is allowed in star-rated hotels to name a few.
Bharat Thakur, president of Dance Bar Owners Association which is affiliated to a body of restaurants and hotels, said: “If there are separate entrances for each of these facilities on different floors and if proper permission is taken, there should be no hurdle in allowing dance, orchestra and pub on the same premises? Besides, we don’t understand the 11.30pm deadline for us when four- and five-star hotels can operate dance floors till 3am and a fine dining bar till 1.30 am. It is discrimination against dance bars.”
He added that if liquor is not allowed in the dance hall at a bar, why it is being permitted in star-rated hotels? Such discrimination has already been criticised by the Supreme Court in its earlier orders,” said Thakur.
Some of the other conditions that bar owners said are haunting them include compulsory biometric attendance for all bar employees, hefty fines to owners and patrons in case of breach of obscenity conditions even as the authority who will decide on breach of obscenity is not finalised yet, and a condition of 21 years of age for dancers.
Many office-bearers of the dance bar association said owners do not want ambiguity over such complex conditions because these could create obstacles by way of harassment and blackmail from the authorities. They said that with the above conditions it is absolutely impossible to run the show.
Another hotelier pointed out that all owners have agreed to put up CCTVs at entrances but they say it should not be made compulsory inside. “Our patraons who come for recreation and to enjoy some privacy may not come if CCTVs are put up, thus affecting our business.”