Amusement places should obtain licence by April 30

Observing that running such places without necessary authorisation will cause danger to public order and safety, Commissioner of Police Shankar Bidari has instructed all police inspectors, ACPs and DCPs to ensure that all places of public amusement obtain the required licence by April 30.

If any public amusement place is found to be running without valid licence after the said date, the owner and the manager will be prosecuted under Section 103 and 105 of the Karnataka Police Act, 1963, he added.

Bidari also asked his men to sell the copies of this order, along with the application form for obtaining the licence, for Rs 20, the proceeds of which would be credited to the Government.

Further, those organising amusement programmes at the Palace Grounds should obtain permission from the Department of Personnel and Administrative Reform (DPAR). When the DPAR refers any such application to any police station for opinion to grant permission for utilising the ground, the Station House Officer (SHO) should issue a No Objection Certificate (NOC) in the specified proforma. The organisers should also pay the necessary charges for additional security deployment, if required, Bidari said.

What the Act says

Under Section 2 (14) of the Karnataka Police Act, 1963, “a place of public amusement means any spot where music, singing, dancing or any diversion or game, or the means of carrying on the same is provided and to which the public are admitted and includes a race course, circus, theatre, music hall, billiard room, bagatelle room, gymnasium, fencing school, swimming pool or dancing hall”.