Live
- Advocate Dehadrai withdraws defamation suit against Mahua Moitra in Delhi HC
- Man thrashed, thrown off 8th floor of NDMC building in Delhi; 2 held for murder
- Punjab CM Maryam Nawaz reviews police passing out parade in uniform
- RBI issues alert against prepaid payment instruments by illegal entities
- Hackers attacked Indian firms on average 2,444 times per week in last 6 months: Report
- US election outcome not to change direction of South Korea-US alliance: Seoul envoy
- 'Manipur Super 50' scores big in providing opportunities to the state's youth
- L&T Technology Services logs Rs 1,304 crore in net profit in FY24
- Rajya Sainik Board-Kolkata empowers deceased veteran's daughter with mobility
- BJP complains to ECI against Abhishek Banerjee for 'abusive' remarks against party candidate
Function hall owners, a divided lot
Opinion is divided on the ban being imposed on late night functions, dances using swords and prolonged wedding processions. Function hall owners are a divided lot at least in Santosh Nagar division. While some welcome the decision, others are wary that their business may be hit. In all, there are close to 40 function halls in Santosh Ngar alone.
Santosh Nagar: Opinion is divided on the ban being imposed on late night functions, dances using swords and prolonged wedding processions. Function hall owners are a divided lot at least in Santosh Nagar division. While some welcome the decision, others are wary that their business may be hit. In all, there are close to 40 function halls in Santosh Ngar alone.
Highlights:
- There have been at least 4-5 injury cases due to sword stunts during weddings each year in the Old City
- There is a large section of Marathi population in the city that is not happy with the ban as dance and songs are an integral part of their weddings
- Some function hall owners do not encourage songs and dance but majority of them do not have a problem
- Function hall owners do not think that business would be hit with the new law
The decision to ban late night functions, processions and dances with sword comes after the tragic death of a boy on Friday. Mohammed Basheer Ahmed, an owner of Golden Function Hall said, “At the time of booking itself we mention that we do not allow music, bursting crackers and sound pollution. We have no problem with the new rules as we too believe in most of them.”
In the Old City, there are function halls that allow baraat (a procession that included dance and song) but a few lay down restrictions.
As per the new rules, prior permission has to be taken for bands and baraat should end by 10pm. Mohammed says that they are unable to handle the patrolling aspect as they do not have staff. The new rules state that the function hall staff has to do patrolling.
Mohiuddin Khan who recently booked a function hall said, “Islam does not allow dances and pomp and show. The new rules are good for everyone.
” However, there are several communities in the city that swear by baraat. Laxmikanth Shinde, a resident of Doodhbowli says, “Maharashtrian weddings are incomplete without baraat. Dance and music is an integral part of our celebrations. We are a peace loving community. Why should we suffer just because of one incident.”
The Santosh Nagar circle inspector P Satish said, “People can always dial 100 in case of problems at function halls. Dancing with swords and daggers during weddings can be fatal.”
Shanbagh function hall owner Mohammed Saleem says, “The rules may be good but the culture of processions dates back to more than a hundred years. In many communities, band, baaja and baraat are very important. It may take time for people to accustom with the new rules.”
By MM Farooqui
