Refusing to pass orders on imposing age and height restrictions on human pyramid formations during for the “dahi handi” celebrations, the Bombay High Court accepted the State Government’s stand banning the children below the age of 14 years from participating in the event.
Hearing two public interest litigations expressing concern over the safety of children participating in the human pyramid formation during the “dahi handi” formations, a HC division bench comprising Justice B. R. Gavai and Justice M. S. Karnik accepted the state Government’s submission that it would not permit the children below the age of 14 years to take part in the dahi handi celebrations.
“It is not for the High Court to impose restrictions on the age of the participants and height of the pyramids as this falls exclusively in the domain of the State legislature. If we enter into this arena we will be infringing upon State’s domain,” Justice Gavai said.
Justice Gavai went onto observe: “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 high court’s observations come ahead of this Dahi-handi celebrations scheduled for August 15.
Earlier, Additional Solicitor General Tushar Mehta had told the high court that having declared “dahi handi” as an adventurous sport, the State Government had — under the Child labour (Prohibition and Regulation) Act — decided to restrict the participation of children below 14 years in the human pyramid formations.
However, refusing to relax the height restrictions on human pyramid formation which it had limited to 20 ft in 2014, the HC bench observed that people got killed while taking selfies, playing cricket and a majority of accidents also take place in toilets, “Accidents happen everywhere. Is this our job to look into all thisIJ, the Judges asked.
It may be recalled that the Bombay High Court had on August 11, 2014 banned the participation of children below 18 years of age, and curtailed the height of human pyramids to 20 feet during the Gokulashtami festival.
The Maharashtra Government had moved the Supreme Court in 2016, seeking relaxation in the age and height restrictions. On its part, the apex court upheld the Bombay High Court’s August 11 2014 order that had limited the height of human pyramid to 20 feet and banned those below 18 years from participating in the event.
Significantly enough, “Govinda” teams had flouted both age and height restrictions imposed by the high court and upheld by the apex court at many places in Mumbai and neighbouring Thane. While children aged around or below 12 years had climbed the penultimate and upper ties of “human pyramid”, the MNS-sponsored “Jai Jawan” Mandal had erected a nine-tier “human pyramid” of 40 feet height at Thane.
At least 128 people were injured in “Dahi-handi”-related incidents in Mumbai and neighbouring Thane city on August 26, 2016.
So much so that the Thane police had registered offences against MNS functionary and “Dahi handi” organizer Avinash Jadhav and 16 “Govinda’ under sections 224/16 u/s 308, 336, 188, 34 Indian Penal Code read with 140 of Maharashtra Police Act for allegedly violating the apex court’s order.
Though the festival is celebrated across Maharashtra, “Dahi-handis” are popular in major cities like Mumbai, Thane, Pune and Nashik. There are at least 700 teams of Govindas. They go from venue to venue, seeking to break the “dahi-handis”. The ever-increasing prize money for the winners has made the sport both lucrative and dangerous for the revellers.
During the “Dahi-handi” celebrations, groups of boisterous youngsters – better known as Govindas – form human pyramids to break the traditional “dahi-handis”. In the past, the human pyramids used to be as tall as 60 feet involving as many as ten layers.
These “dahi-handis” contain a mixture of milk, curd, dry fruits and huge prize money for Govindas who break them. The ritual involving “dahi-handi” symbolises the manner in which young Krishna stole butter from an earthen pot suspended from the ceiling.