Mumbai, September 16, 2026: The Bombay High Court has refused interim relief to a Thane restaurant whose food licence was suspended for allegedly serving non-dairy analogue paneer as regular paneer, observing that consumers have a right to know what they are being served.
A bench of Chief Justice MC Tripathi and Justice Advait Sethna directed Udupi Swaad Restaurant to first pursue the statutory remedy available under the Food Safety and Standards Act (FSS Act), 2006, before seeking the High Court's intervention.
Last month, the HC had refused to grant it any relief, observing that the eatery would have to “suffer” for some time for serving customers a product different from what they believed they were eating.
Restaurant Challenges Licence Suspension
The restaurant had challenged the Food and Drugs Administration's (FDA) August 11 action, contending that its licence was suspended without issuing an Improvement Notice under Section 32 or passing a reasoned order.
During the hearing on Wednesday, the restaurant’s advocate submitted: “If I want to challenge, there is no order at all.” He argued that even the appellate authority would be unable to decide whether an Improvement Notice ought to have been issued.
The FDA had inspected the restaurant at Wagle Estate, Thane, on June 11 and seized a sample of loose paneer. A laboratory report dated June 27 found foreign fats in the sample and classified it as “unsafe” under the FSS Act.
FDA Flags Analogue Paneer Use
According to an affidavit filed by Dr Sachin Santoshrao Jadhav, Joint Commissioner (Food), Konkan Division, the restaurant had procured non-dairy cheese analogues for preparing paneer dishes. The State alleged that customers were not informed that analogue paneer was being served through the menu cards or bills.
The restaurant's lawyer also questioned the FDA's July 31 notification banning analogue paneer, asking whether it could be applied retrospectively to a sample collected in June.
Highlighting the impact of the licence suspension, the counsel said 18 employees were dependent on the restaurant for their livelihood.
Court Directs Statutory Appeal
Government Pleader Priyabhushan Kakade opposed the plea, submitting that the restaurant had an effective statutory remedy.
The bench declined to convert the suspension into an Improvement Notice or grant immediate relief and directed the restaurant to exhaust the statutory appellate remedy before approaching the High Court.
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During the hearing on August 21, the HC had said: “You need to suffer for some time. If you are making people suffer by eating this (analog paneer), you also need to suffer for some time… Poetic justice. We will take a different strict view.”
The bench had also questioned whether customers had been informed that they were being served analog paneer instead of genuine paneer.
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