Want to party in Pune? Well it may just have to be in the gaze of security cameras. As per a new directive, anybody partying in hotels, resorts, farmhouses and venues of student gatherings on campuses will have to take permission from the police.
The police measures go on to say anyone hosting such a party will also have to submit names, addresses and contact numbers of all invitees. Finally, and most bizarrely, the hosts of the party will have to install cameras so that the entire party can be videographed.
The police rules to partying has had partygoers up in arms. Says Rakesh a student
''It is totally illegal and violates the right to privacy. The government should come out with the Right to Privacy Bill soon so that such attempts could be checked.''
Preeti Devnani a socialite agrees and adds, ''It's absurd. I am not going to videograph. What if I am wearing a short skirt? Who knows? Who will be watching these clippings? Some pervert may misuse it.''
In their defense the police say these rules will ensure a ban on parties that involve drugs and sex. They point to raves that have become all too common in the far and isolated suburbs of this city. However, partygoers in Pune see in this blanket ruling more moral policing than genuine policing.