PUNE: Bombay High Court has held that wearing skimpy clothing, dancing provocatively and making gestures cannot be considered as obscene acts which cause public annoyance. The High Court's judgment dismissed the case against the event held at a banquet hall at a resort in Tirkhura, Nagpur.

A police team raided the Tiger Paradise Resort and Water Park in Tirkhura on the orders of Nagpur Bench of the High Court. According to the FIR, when the police arrived, they saw six women wearing skimpy clothes and dancing provocatively. Some of the spectators were drunk and were throwing fake ten rupee notes at these women. Police registered an FIR against the program under section 294 of the charge related to obscene acts.

The court held that for an act to be offensive under Section 294, it must be done in public. The court also pointed out that if such activities cause trouble to others, those who saw or heard it or who were present at the place where the incident took place, should file a complaint.

High Court said that wearing skimpy clothes, dancing provocatively and making gestures which the officers found obscene cannot be seen as acts of obscenity to the extent of causing inconvenience to the public. 'Nowadays it is normal and acceptable for women to wear such clothes. These types of clothes are seen in movies and in public beauty pageants. It would be regressive to adopt a narrow view of what acts constitute obscenity. The court wants to take a progressive view on this matter'- the High Court said.