Mumbai restaurants plan SOP to tackle alleged blackmail over food-safety complaints

AHAR members and MLA Sanjay Upadhyay address the media on Wednesday on their plan to deal with blackmail. Pic/Nimesh Dave

Mumbai’s restaurateur fraternity is preparing to draw up a standard operating procedure (SOP) to deal with complaints, social-media threats and alleged blackmail attempts against food business operators, following the alleged extortion of the owner of the Radha Krishna eatery after the establishment faced Food and Drug Administration (FDA) action.

Members of the Indian Hotel & Restaurant Association or AHAR and the owners of Radha Krishna on Wednesday came together, with the former extending their support and discussing how establishments should respond if anyone attempts to use food-safety complaints, viral videos or threats of approaching regulators to demand money.

Also read: Mumbai: Borivli eatery owner alleges Rs 25 lakh extortion over viral rat-in-dosa video

The meeting comes days after Borivli police booked two women on a complaint by Jay Shah, owner of the Radha Krishna Hotel, alleging that they demanded Rs 25 lakh and threatened to circulate again a viral video purportedly showing a rodent in a dosa. According to the FIR, one of the women was allegedly caught accepting R6 lakh in cash in a trap laid in the presence of independent witnesses on the evening of October 5. The restaurant’s licence had earlier been suspended following the incident. The accused have been booked under sections 308(2) and 3(5) of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita.

BJP MLA from Borivli Sanjay Upadhyay said the restaurant fraternity had no objection to regulatory action when food safety was at stake, but would strongly oppose anyone allegedly exploiting such action to extort money.

“The BJP government appreciates the action being taken by FSSAI [Food Safety and Standards Authority of India] and Maharashtra FDA. They are doing their job, and because of their enforcement, people are getting safe and hygienic food on their plates. But we will not tolerate anyone, including so-called RTI activists or extortionists, using different means to threaten restaurant owners and demand money,” Upadhyay said.

He added, “If anyone threatens a food business operator by saying they will approach the FDA or make a video viral unless money is paid, AHAR and the business community of Borivli will come together. We need to kill this menace of blackmail and ensure nobody plays with food business operators.”

Upadhyay said Radha Krishna’s owners, Pankaj Gangar and Jay Shah, were particularly worried after the FDA action. “They have a very good reputation in Borivli and are known for running a pure-vegetarian restaurant. If there is any violation, the authorities should take action, but nobody should be allowed to exploit the situation for personal gain,” he said.

AHAR members, including Niranjan Shetty, were present at the meeting in support of the restaurant owners. Members said the proposed SOP would focus on documenting complaints, immediately informing the authorities and avoiding direct negotiations with anyone demanding money by threatening regulatory action or social-media exposure.

The association is also expected to encourage restaurant owners to approach police and the FDA instead of succumbing to such alleged pressure, signalling a collective stand against blackmail while supporting legitimate food-safety enforcement.

[popcorn number=”Sept 28″ desc=”Day Radha Krishna’s licence was suspended” class=”Default”]

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