Bengaluru: The Legislature House Committee formed to look into the working style of clubs in Bengaluru has recommended the government to enact a law to regulate the clubs.
The Legislature House Committee, headed by MLA N A Haris, has submitted its report to Assembly Speaker on Tuesday. The report recommends the government to remove the dress code ban and suggested to the government to bring in this regulation by finalizing the Karnataka Entry into Public Places (Removal of Restriction on Dress and Regulation of Membership and Fee) Act 2015 which is currently in the draft form. The committee has also suggested relating club entry fees and accommodating elected representatives in clubs located in their constituencies.
The committee has also recommended the government to allocate land for the construction of clubs at each taluk and reserve space for the construction of club at layouts formed on a land more than 25 acres for the benefit of residents. It has also recommended the government to amend the Karnataka Town and Country Planning Act for this purpose.
In September 2015, government put out a draft bill – The Karnataka Entry into Public Places (Removal of Restriction on Dress and Regulation of Membership and Fee) Act 2015 – to bring the clubs under its control. Among other points proposed in the bill, ban the dress code (remove the restriction on entry of traditional/Indian attire) came as a shocker to the clubs, especially those in Bengaluru that disallow members wearing dhoti-kurta.
Subsequently, the joint house committee was asked to study the bill and give its observations. The government had also asked the clubs to send in suggestions/ objections to the bill and a majority of them disagreed with the move. The bone of contention, of course, was the dress code, which the clubs vehemently defended.
The dress code followed by some elite clubs where a few members/guests clad in traditional Indian clothes were barred entry on various occasions caught the attention of the state administration. Following a series of run-ins between club management with officialdom, the government constituted a house committee to look into its working style and suggest reforms.
Recommendations
* No person wearing a veshti (dhoti) reflecting Kannada culture or any other Indian traditional dress, shall be denied entry into any public place, provided that the dress is decent. No club shall make any rule, regulation or bylaw or issue any circular imposing such dress restriction.
* Membership shall not be denied to MP, MLA, MLC, person with meritorious contribution in sports, ex-servicemen or renowned person and those who have strived for uplift of society.
