Protests over rain dance

A 'rain dance' arranged by private organisers on the Kuthirakoor island near Kochi has sparked a controversy in Kerala.

Leading the critics has been the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) state president C.K. Padmanabhan, who has sought to know if promotion of sexually explicit cultural shows were part of the programme of the ruling United Democratic Front.

The programme was shot on film and transmitted on a Malayalam channel, which triggered the controversy. The media also rushed to Tourism Minister K.V. Thomas for his comments on holding of a rain dance in the state.

Thomas denied that the state government or the tourism department had anything to do with the show, where participants danced gleefully holding beverage glasses, and accompanied by music and showers.

Tourism department officials said the controversy was unnecessary as such shows were part and parcel of life in major cities. Industry operators felt that such events were also required if Kerala hoped to attract tourists.