Maharashtra introduced the “prohibition of performance of dance in eating house, permit room or beer bar” first in August 2005. Violations meant imprisonment extending up to three years and with a fine which may extend up to Rs. 2 lakh.
However, a challenge to the law saw the Bombay High Court in April 2006 declare the prohibition “unconstitutional.”
The High Court had held that Maharashtra’s decision to ban dance performances proved to be “totally counterproductive.”
A subsequent appeal by the State in the Supreme Court was of no use as the apex court agreed with the High Court in 2013, and seconded that the prohibition was violative of the fundamental rights in the Constitution.
It had agreed in 2013 that Maharashtra “failed to establish that the restriction is reasonable or that it is in the interest of the general public.”
“Greater the restriction, the more the need for scrutiny. Instead of putting curbs on women’s freedom, empowerment would be more tenable and a socially wise approach,” it had held.
It was to defeat this apex court ruling that the State Legislature had brought back prohibition through an amendment on June 25, 2014, this time even enhancing the fine to Rs. 5 lakh.
