TEAM HERALD
PANJIM: Sunburn, India’s largest electronic dance and music festival held in Goa, has triggered a rift in the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP). While the tourism minister has pitched to shift the lucrative Sunburn festival out of Candolim, where it is held annually, the local MLA has warned the government from shifting it.
Speaking to reporters soon after the BJP legislative party meeting, Tourism Minister Dilip Parulekar said that “the government will go ahead with its plan not to have the festival in Candolim, where the event has been held for last several years as the area is already choc-o-bloc with tourists in December.”
He, however, refused to speak further. Calangute BJP MLA Michael Lobo, refusing to accept the government plan said, “shifting Sunburn out of Candolim means shifting it from Goa…no other village or constituency will accept the festival…we will not support the move.”
“The festival is in the interest of State as it brings a lot of tourists to Goa and gives business opportunities to many like restaurateurs and taxi drivers. Further it also generates revenue for the State,” Lobo said. Lobo was earlier; last month on record saying he would also not want the event in Candolim unless and until the government provided adequate infrastructure facilities to hold the annual mega event.
Its organizers, the Percept Property have already gone on record saying that they were trying to move the festival from Candolim because of infrastructure issues. The organisers had said that they are looking for an alternative.
The Sunburn music festival was first started in Goa in 2007 and has since been held annually in December with thousands of youngsters and music lovers flocking from all over the country to the venue, which has hosted some of the best EDM performers.
Meanwhile, responding to newly appointed North Goa Superintendent of Police (SP) Priyanka Kashyap’s statement in favour of legalising of prostitution, BJP MLA Michael Lobo said, “We don’t want Goa to be tagged as sex tourist destination.”
“Goa is a unique tourist destination and we don’t want people to call it as sex tourist destination…We don’t want another Thailand in Goa.”
“Prostitution is illegal and cannot be legalised,” he said adding ‘police should focus on curbing crimes including prostitution.’
Lobo said that a number of prostitution rackets have been busted in the past few months lowering Goa’s image in the eyes of the public. The need of the hour is to crush the menace of prostitution, leave alone legalising it.
BJP’s yet another MLA Vishnu Wagh had raised strong objection to SP’s statement and had also made a written complaint to the deputy inspector general of police (DIG) OP Mishra.
