Bombay HC Pulls Up FDA Over 'Double Standards', Orders Improvement Notices To Mantralaya Canteens

Mumbai, July 31, 2026: The Bombay High Court on Friday pulled up the Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) for adopting “biased” standards while taking action against private commercial eateries as against those operated in government and semi-government establishments and canteens.

The court directed the regulator to issue improvement notices to the three canteens at Mantralaya after an inspection by a court-appointed panel found unhygienic conditions there.

A Bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad termed the FDA’s reports, which granted 98 per cent compliance to these Mantralaya canteens, as “unreliable”.

Although it lauded the FDA’s proactiveness, the Bench stressed that the law must be enforced equally against government and private establishments.

The court was hearing a petition by south Mumbai’s Poornima restaurant, which challenged the FDA’s decision to suspend its licence. During the hearing, the judges questioned how the Mantralaya canteens had been given a 98 per cent cleanliness rating by the FDA.

Court-Appointed Panel Finds Lapses

To verify the claim, the Bench appointed a panel of four lawyers during the morning session to inspect the canteens. The panel submitted its report, along with photographs and videos, in the afternoon session, stating that it found broken sewage lines, open drains, unclean kitchen areas and the presence of cockroaches and flies.

After examining the report and photographs, the court said the FDA could not apply different standards to similar violations. “Either suspend this licence (of the Mantralaya canteens) or restore Poornima’s licence. We want parity. Every individual in this country is equal. No one is above the law,” the Bench observed. Along with Poornima restaurant, four others have filed similar petitions.

It further remarked, “If one restaurant’s licence has to be suspended, then even Mantralaya canteens have to be suspended.”

FDA Agrees To Issue Notices

Following the court’s observations, the government pleader representing the FDA informed the Bench that it would convert the suspension notice issued to Poornima restaurant into an improvement notice. It also agreed to issue similar improvement notices to the three Mantralaya canteens.

Accepting the statement, the court directed that all the establishments be given time until August 4 to rectify the deficiencies and asked the FDA to conduct a fresh inspection the following day. The matter has been kept for hearing on August 6.

The Bench also directed FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe to "scrutinise" the inspection reports of the Mantralaya canteens and take action against the officers concerned, stating that the findings were “prima facie unreliable”.

Court Calls For Uniform Enforcement

While appreciating the FDA’s crackdown on unhygienic eateries, the judges cautioned the regulator against acting unfairly.

“We appreciate the department for the work they are doing, but we only want them to be equal to all. They need to be impartial, fair and uniform to all,” the court said.

The Bench also criticised the practice of issuing suspension notices without first giving establishments an opportunity to address deficiencies.

“You are shooting first and then asking questions. Give them some time to improve,” the judges observed, adding that “the medicine should not be worse than the disease.”

Earlier in the day, the FDA submitted details of inspections conducted at eateries, clubs and canteens across Mumbai, including those at the High Court and Mantralaya.

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The court sought photographs and videos of the Mantralaya inspection and questioned why some establishments were issued improvement notices while others were directly served suspension notices.

The Bench reiterated that food safety laws must be enforced uniformly and that no establishment, whether government-run or privately owned, should receive preferential treatment.

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