Touching a Mumbai bar dancer or throwing money at her can land you in jail

Mangalore Today News Network

New Delhi, Apr 11, 2016: The Maharashtra Cabinet on Monday approved the new dance bar bill and it is likely to be tabled in the state Assembly on Tuesday.

 

The new bill has stringent provisions to tackle the exploitation of dancers in the

industry. Any person who touches or throws money at dancers inside the bars can face jail imprisonment and a an hefty fine of Rs 50,000.   
 
This bill also has provision of a fine of Rs 25 lakh for operating illegal dance bar.

The bill was approved at a meeting chaired by Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on March 29.

According to the new bill, such bars will not not be allowed to operate within a distance of 1 km of any education institution. It also says that the dancers will not be ’skimpily’ dressed and won’t indulge in ’vulgar’ dance.

The new bill also asks dance bar owners to install CCTV cameras at the entrance and floors. The owners will have to save the recordings for the last 30 days. The owner faces a fine of Rs 10 lakh or imprisonment for 3 years if a dancer is ’exploited’.

Following the Supreme Court’s decision to lift ban on dance bars few months ago, Maharashtra CM Devendra Fadnavis had set up a 25-member committee to to deliberate on the issue and submit their suggestions.