Warning issued that a petition will be filed seeking a stay on the event and legal action if no action plan is submitted
Mumbai: The proposed ‘Sunburn Festival’ at Sewri has raised serious legal and public safety concerns. Consequently, a legal notice has been served on the organisers by Advocate Ms Poonam Dilip Jadhav on behalf of the Nasha-Virodhi Sangharsh Abhiyan, through Advocate Prathamesh Gaikwad of the Bombay High Court.
🚨 Legal Notice to Sunburn Festival Organisers
⚖️ Nashavirodhi Sangharsh Abhiyan issues legal notice over proposed Sunburn, Sewri (Mumbai)
Protests were held demanding Ban Sunburn Mumbai event.
Key Points ⬇️
• Notice sent via HC advocates over deaths, drug incidents & safety… https://t.co/4cK4vfwdZt pic.twitter.com/YudcJZ6CbD— Sanatan Prabhat (@SanatanPrabhat) December 17, 2025
The notice states that:
- This notice is not based on conjecture, but on documented records of deaths, medical emergencies, drug-related incidents, failures in crowd management, and regulatory violations that occurred during previous Sunburn events.
- Despite deaths reported in the years 2009, 2019, and 2024, the organisers have neither published any independent inquiry report nor disclosed any corrective safety plan, which is a matter of grave concern.
- The decision to permit entry to minors in the 16–17 age group at the proposed event is medically dangerous and contrary to the protective principles of law.
- In earlier Sunburn events, incidents involving seizure of narcotic substances and arrests were reported. Under the law, the organisers are liable for such occurrences.
- Sewri is an area with narrow roads, limited entry and exit points, and environmental sensitivity, making it unsuitable for a large-scale event. Nevertheless, the organisers have failed to submit any documentation regarding structural safety reports, crowd control plans, medical preparedness, environmental impact, or police permissions. Continuing ticket sales without obtaining requisite approvals amounts to misleading the public.
- The organisers have been directed to publicly release, within 72 hours, a comprehensive action plan detailing child safety measures, crowd management, medical preparedness, environmental compliance, and police coordination. Failing this, a petition will be filed before the Bombay High Court seeking an immediate stay on the event along with criminal, civil, and regulatory action.
Copies of this legal notice have also been forwarded to the Mumbai Police Commissioner, the Anti-Narcotics Cell, the Maharashtra Pollution Control Board, and the Bombay Natural History Society.
