Chennai: Madras High Court yesterday refused to allow cultural dance programmes in temple festivals, saying it was a recent creation and not borne out by any tradition or culture.
'Such a requirement to conduct dance festivals in temples is a recent creation and not borne out by any tradition or culture,' Justice B Rajendran said, dismissing petitions filed by members of public of Salem, Namakkal and Erode districts.
The Court said it had been brought to its notice that such dance programs are conducted only to lure young minds and to take them to wrong path and that audiences there are mostly intoxicated. Besides they use the area where the programmes are held for unlawful activities. Such practices have to be curbed, the court said.
The petitioners wanted to conduct cultural dance programmes in the annual temple festivals on different dates in February/March 2014.
Dismissing the petitions,Justice Rajendran quoted several Judgements of High Court and Supreme Court, saying the petitioners in all these cases sent representations to Station House Officers just two days prior from post offices in the area and filed petitions even before these reach them.
