Bombay HC restores FDA-suspended Navi Mumbai hotel's licence, says 'we are in India, need a realistic approach'

The Bombay High Court has quashed an order by the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) suspending the food licence of a four-star hotel in Navi Mumbai, observing that authorities need to adopt a realistic approach given "we're in India."

A bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad, hearing the matter on Wednesday, noted that the FDA's suspension order was based on the discovery of just two insects during a surprise inspection, even though the hotel had otherwise recorded a 95 per cent compliance score on hygiene and food safety parameters.

Also read: No chips, cola for kids: Maharashtra FDA bans sale of junk food within 50 metres of schools



The court said this "solitary finding" could not justify continuing the suspension when the overall compliance report was satisfactory.

"We are in India. We have to take a realistic stand," the bench observed, quashing the suspension and directing authorities to immediately restore the hotel's Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI) licence and allow it to resume operations.

The FDA had suspended the FSSAI licence of Park Inn by Radisson in Navi Mumbai on July 3, a day after conducting a surprise inspection at the property. The suspension order cited "serious lapses in hygiene, sanitation, food storage and food handling practices." The hotel challenged the order before the High Court, arguing that the action was disproportionate to the violation found.

Government Pleader Neha Bhide, appearing for the FDA, defended the suspension, telling the court that food safety compliance permits no compromise regardless of the scale of the lapse, and that the law provides a separate statutory appeal route before the Food Safety Commissioner.

The bench, while acknowledging the importance of hygiene enforcement, questioned whether a single instance of insects in the kitchen area warranted the extreme step of suspension when the establishment had otherwise substantially met the required standards. ACJ Ghuge remarked in a lighter vein that even the court's own premises had recently seen a stray cockroach and a fly on the judges' desk.

Also read: Cockroaches, flies found at Mumbai's iconic clubs; Cricket Club of India, MIG, Willingdon & Juhu Gymkhana lose food licences

Beyond the immediate relief to the hotel, the bench flagged a broader concern about consistency in enforcement, directing the FDA to inspect all government and semi-government eating establishments across the state, including the canteens at Mantralaya and the Bombay High Court itself, and to submit a status report along with video recordings of these inspections.

Responding to the court's query on selective enforcement, Bhide clarified that the FDA had not adopted a "pick and choose" approach, pointing out that canteens run by the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation, the civic-run KEM Hospital, the Cricket Club of India and several prominent Mumbai clubs had also been inspected and shut down over food safety violations in the past.

The matter has been posted for further hearing on July 31, when the FDA is expected to place before the court details of inspections carried out across establishments in the state.