Several organisers of Janmashtami celebrations in Maharashtra flouted a Supreme Court ruling on Thursday, with human pyramids that were much above the 20-feet cap prescribed by the court, and were formed by underage Govindas (youths who form human pyramids to break the pot of curd). The most prominent among law-breakers was the Dahi Handi organised by Raj Thackeray’s Maharashtra Navnirman Sena in Mumbai’s Thane, reported NDTV. The Govindas here aimed to break a record with their 49-feet pyramid.
When asked about it, main organiser Avinash Jadhav said he only takes orders from Raj Thackeray and added that he was willing to go to jail for breaking the law. Thackeray allegedly asked his party workers to celebrate day the “way it's meant to be." According to the news channel, policemen posted at the venue did not intervene.
The Supreme Court had recently upheld the Bombay High Court’s order that barred youths below 18 years from participating in the ritual and fixed a cap of 20 feet on the height of the human pyramid.
Meanwhile, the Shiv Sena on Thursday said the government should have come out with an Ordinance to reverse the Supreme Court order on how Dahi Handi festival should be celebrated, reported PTI. The party said that people would have been happier if the government did something to reverse the apex court’s order, adding that “celebrating one’s festival has now become a crime in the country.”
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