In the last few years, municipal corporations across Delhi have been running a drive against spas without a trade license. Merely operating without a license is not the problem, the concern lies in the fact that many spas in the national capital  have been busted time and again as spot investigations found many spa owners of running prostitution rackets in the garb of offering massage services.

The Delhi High Court on Tuesday directed the three MCDs to file a jurisdiction wise status report on the number of Spas and massage parlours operating without a license and the legitimacy of their business practices.

In the last few years, there has been a rampant increase in the number of parlours offering cross gender massages in the city and that has become the cause of concern for the Delhi government.

For instance, a simple google search shows a number of spa centres in Delhi offering body to body massages, and the therapist, usually a woman, claims to give the customers, a heavenly spa experience.

Delhi Government has been in vigilante mode to crackdown on illegal activities. In doing so, the government also issued guidelines in a bid to ban cross gender massage service in the city. Although the ban has since been stayed, the tug of war over the executive order between the Delhi Government and the Delhi High Court continues.

While the government has challenged the stay on the ban, the Delhi High Court seems dissatisfied with the disclosures made in the status reports so far.

“The status reports fall short of explaining further whether the spa centres were conducting businesses as per law and not indulging in illegal activities. These disclosures need to be made by responsible officers of the corporations,” Justice Yashwant Varma was quoted by PTI as saying.

The court's argument hinges towards saving the livelihood of those in the profession.

The matter has been listed for hearing for August 30.