press trust of india
Mumbai, August 7: Children below the age of 14 years cannot participate in the Dahi Handi festival, the Maharashtra government Monday said in the Bombay High Court, which accepted the statement, but refused to impose any restriction on the height of human pyramid formations.
A division bench of Justices B R Gavai and M S Karnik said it was not for the high court to impose restrictions on the age of the participants, famously known as ‘govindas’, in the festival and the height of pyramids. “Imposing age and height restrictions is out of our purview. This falls exclusively in the domain of the state legislature. “If we enter the arena of the state legislature then we would be encroaching. It is for the state legislature to decide and pass an enactment on the restrictions if required,” Justice Gavai said.
“We accept the statement made by the state government that it would ensure children below 14 years of age would not participate in the Dahi Handi festival,” the judge said. Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta, appearing for the state government, told the court that according to the Child Labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act, children below 14 years of age would not be allowed to participate in the festival since the government had in August last year declared Dahi Handi as an adventure sport.
The high court was hearing two petitions filed by city residents, raising concern over the participation of minors in the festival and lack of safety measures due to which several accidents have occurred. Dahi Handi, a festival marking the birth of Lord Krishna, will be celebrated next week. The festivities involve forming a human pyramid and breaking an earthen pitcher filled with buttermilk which is tied to a rope at a height.
In 2014, the high court had passed an order saying children below the age of 18 years could not participate in the festival, and had also imposed a height restriction of 20 feet for the pyramids.