Neta’s ladies bar in Bhayandar raided, 70 held!
Launching a fresh crackdown aimed at flushing out elements, indulging in vulgar and immoral activities from the twin-city, the Thane (rural) police, led by Assistant Superintendent of Police (ASP), Atul Kulkarni raided a bar in Bhayandar which had earned notoriety for indulging in illegal activities under the guise of live orchestra performances.
In response to a specific tip-off, the team led by ASP Kulkarni under the instructions of the SP Dr. Mahesh Patil, swooped down on Hotel Anna Palace, a notorious ladies bar operating amidst an industrial hub that falls under the jurisdiction of the Navghar police station.
The raid which was conducted at 1 am on Monday, led to the arrest of 70 people, including 20 barmaids along with the staffers and soliciting customers, putting owners in a fix.
However, no attempts have been made to track down the owners who are actually responsible for the illegal activities which were destroying the moral fabric of the younger generation.
While the so-called female singers lip-synced to blaring background music, tipsy patrons were not only found shaking a leg with barmaids but also showered wads of currency notes on them, sources said. While all the accused have been booked under Section 294 (indulging in obscene acts and songs) and 34 (common intention) of the Indian Penal Code, the police also recovered cash amounting Rs. 27,000 from the bar premises.
In an attempt to hoodwink cops on regular inspection duty, the bar operators made girls sit on the stage as singers who would later get down and indulge in obscene acts, police said.
This is not the first time the police have raided Hotel Anna Palace. The bar has been taken to task on multiple occasions in the past for violating licence norms. However, the operators seem to remain undeterred and have brazenly continued with their nefarious activities. Meanwhile, the massive Sunday night swoop has created ripples across ladies orchestra bars in the twin-city.
BJP link under scanner!
Although the licensee of the establishment turned out to be a local BJP corporator, it has been contended that the bar had been leased out to a person identified as Ravi. As per information sourced out from the excise department ( C- Wing, Thane ), Hotel Anna Palace has been issued the license (No: FL.III: 1322) under FL-2 BR category. “We will examine the lease documents of the erring establishment, before taking further action against other responsible people who come under the penal ambit,” said an investigating officer. The corporator in question, who earlier owed his allegiance to the MNS, had jumped onto the BJP bandwagon to successfully contest the civic elections last year.