Bombay HC Revokes FDA Suspension Of Navi Mumbai Hotel, Considers Costs Over Delay Despite 100 Per Cent Compliance

Mumbai, August 3, 2026: The Food and Drug Administration (FDA) was once again rapped by the Bombay High Court on Monday for not revoking the licence suspension order against a Navi Mumbai-based bar and restaurant even after it found the establishment to be 100 per cent compliant with food safety norms during a re-inspection.

While revoking the suspension order, a bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad orally remarked that it intends to impose costs on the department for the damages suffered by the restaurant owner.

Last week, the High Court had pulled up the regulator for its selective action against eateries, terming its approach "biased". It questioned the FDA for not taking action against canteens in Mantralaya and other government and semi-government establishments.

Court Questions Delay

On Monday, the High Court was hearing a petition filed by Hotel Pawan Bar and Restaurant in Belapur, Navi Mumbai, through advocate Sagar Shetty, challenging the FDA's suspension of its licence.

Advocate Mayur Khandeparkar, representing the petitioner, submitted that the FDA inspected the premises on June 29 and found them to be 63 per cent compliant with the rules, following which a suspension order was issued on June 30.

As per the rules, the petitioner filed an appeal before the authority, and a re-inspection was conducted, which showed that the establishment was 100 per cent compliant. A certificate to that effect was also issued.

The plea stated that although the statutory appeal had been filed on July 6, it was taken up for hearing only on July 28, nearly three weeks later. Despite the petitioner having achieved complete compliance, the suspension order was not revoked on July 28. Instead, the appeal was adjourned to August 4 without granting any relief, Khandeparkar submitted.

Bench Seeks Accountability

However, the regulator did not revoke the suspension order, prompting the High Court to question, "Who will compensate the petitioner for the losses he has suffered each day?"

The bench appreciated the drives undertaken by the FDA but remarked, "The problem is that this department was sleeping all this while and has now woken up. You have a laudable Commissioner, but once the petitioner has been certified as 100 per cent compliant, why should the licence remain suspended?"

The judges said they would consider whether to impose costs on the FDA. "If we remain silent, then we would be failing in our duty," the bench observed.

The court revoked the suspension order and posted the matter for further hearing on August 5 to deliberate on the costs to be imposed on the FDA. It also directed the petitioner to file an affidavit detailing the financial losses suffered due to the closure of the premises since July 14.

Mantralaya Canteens Under Scrutiny

The bench had reprimanded the FDA after it submitted a report claiming that the canteens inside Mantralaya were 93 per cent compliant and, therefore, no action had been taken against them.

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However, an inspection by a court-appointed four-member panel of advocates found otherwise and submitted photographs and videos showing that the canteens were unclean, with cockroaches and flies, broken drainage, and an open sewage system.

The bench had then directed the FDA to issue improvement notices to the Mantralaya canteens while keeping the matter for hearing on August 6.

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