Sunburn Goa music festival hits rough weather

PANAJI - The three-day Sunburn Goa electronic music festival, scheduled to be held next week, has run into rough weather with three civil society groups Tuesday demanding it be banned as it gave the state a “bad name”.

“A young girl, Meha Bahuguna, died at the festival because of drug overdose last year. Such festivals are giving Goa tourism and the village of Candolim (which hosts it) a bad name,” Tukaram Naik of the Candolim Nagrik Manch said at a press conference.

Members of the Nerul Nagarik Kriti Samiti (NNKS) and the Reis Magos-Verem Citizens also backed Naik’s demands.

“We have written to the state administration to cancel permissions and necessary approvals to conduct such a festival. Let the administration take Bahuguna’s death to its logical conclusion and bring to book those responsible,” said Naik, a former sarpanch of Candolim.

Sunburn Goa, to be held Dec 27-29 at Candolim beach, is expected to get some of the top names in the world of electronic music like Paul Van Dyk, Ferry Corsten and Dave Seaman.

Bahuguna, a 23-year-old youngster from Bangalore, died of drug overdose at the Sunburn festival last year. After an autopsy revealed that she had died of drug abuse, the police had questioned the organisers of the event.