In a move favoring the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA), the Bombay High Court on Friday rapped a Thane restaurant while denying it relief from the agency’s action for serving banned analogue paneer.
What happened in court
“You need to suffer first, as you have made people suffer by eating this. This is poetic justice. “You are making people eat something rotten by making them believe that it is paneer, and you are saying improvement notice should be given to you? Why don’t you advertise on your signboard that original food is not available with us,” it added. The restaurant assured the court that it would not use the banned paneer again. However, the bench noted that a customer has the right to know what they are consuming.
This development comes after the eatery had approached the court and filed a petition against the FDA’s August 11 order suspending its licence after it was discovered that the restaurant was serving banned analogue paneer. Under the government order, offenders could face a minimum fine of ₹ 10 lakh and life imprisonment if the consumption of unsafe food results in death.
Highlighting the irony of the situation, the court stated that the restaurant needed to “suffer first,” calling the situation “poetic justice. The restaurant, in its plea, said the FDA ought to have first issued it an improvement notice, according to news agency PTI . We will take a different strict view this time,” the bench said dismissing the hotel’s contention.
