PUNE: A number
of local residents along with a number of social outfits, including members of
right wing groups, protested against the electronic dance-music (EDM) fest
Sunburn on Sunday, demanding that it be shifted out of the state.
Gram Panchayat members and residents of Bavdhan and Lavale
villages, along with local politicians and social outfits, staged a
‘rasta-roko’ (road block) near Oxford Golf Course in Lavale, near Bavdhan, the
venue of the music fest scheduled from December 28 to 31.
“We demand that the festival be taken out of the state
altogether. How has the administration been so permissive towards an event
which breeds addiction and encourages bad habits among the youth? The
Maharashtra government must take a firm stand against the conduct of such
events,” said Rahul Dudhale, former sarpanch of Bavdhan village.
Kiran Dagade-Patil, a corporator from Bavdhan, alleged that
the festival was a hotbed of illicit activities, and also caused needless
traffic snarls. Sunburn, now in its 11th edition, has unfailingly managed to
court controversy, compelling organisers to shift venues in Pune a number of
times. This year, after locals protested against the first proposed venue in
Pimpri-Chinchwad, the organisers were denied permission for their second venue
in the Viman Nagar area. The event is now scheduled to be held at the Oxford
Golf Course in Lavale near the city’s Bavdhan area from December 28 to 31 on a
35-acre plot.
Karan Singh, CEO, Sunburn, had earlier clarified that all
requisite permissions had been obtained, along with the consent of the Lavale
gram panchayat and the district police. However, villagers from Lavale, who
were part of Sunday’s protest, claimed that the gram panchayat granted
permission in an ‘irregular manner’, without consensus of all members. They
also accused the event organisers of illegally levelling their land.
Last week, the Bombay High Court cleared the decks for Sunburn
with the caveat that the government would have to spell out measures to ensure
that liquor or cigarettes were not sold to those who were underage. On Friday
last, the civil court in Pune had rejected a plea by Shiv Sena and MNS
corporators in the Pune Municipal Corporation seeking a restraining order as
the organisers had allegedly indulged in illicit tree felling.
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