Divert cheergirls money to farmers: Bal Thackeray

Mumbai, Apr 28 (UNI) Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray today advised the Indian Premier League (IPL) to divert money being spent on cheergirls towards the uplift of families of poor farmers, whose sole earning members had committed suicide.

In an editorial titled 'Cricketcha Dance Bar' (cricket dance bar) in the Sena mouthpiece 'Saamna', Mr Thackeray said he loves music as well as sports but questioned whether the people now come to watch cricket or the girls in skimpy dresses.

'Cricket is a sport and not a gambling den or dance bar', he observed.

Mr Thackeray, who had openly supported dance bars, said the cheergirls would get Rs 15 to 20 lakhs for their performance while wearing skimpy dress but bar girls, who perform with a proper dress, were shunted down on grounds of obscenity.

The editorial also described item girl Rakhee Sawant as one of the popular cheer girls, who also faced a ban, but the Deputy Chief Minister R R Patil now approves foreign cheergirls.

In a hard-hitting statement, the editorial said the Congress-NCP leaders always get attracted towards foreigners. ''The Congressmen tried to make a foreigner as the prime minister of the country, while the NCP is showing its real image with the dance performance of the foreigners''.

Mr Thackeray also observed if money has to be made it should be by the 'bar girls', who are from the country.

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