For an autorickshaw driver in Pune, a lunch outing with friends turned out into a nightmare after he ate a burger with pieces of glass in it. 31-year-old Sajit Pathan had gone to eat at Burger King on FC Road in Pune with his friends. When he took a bite of his burger, he complained of irritation in his throat and spat blood. His friends were shocked to find broken pieces of glass in his burger.
The incident occurred on Wednesday but came to light after Pathan and his friends registered a complaint against Burger King and its employees with police. The compliant was registered with Deccan Gymkhana police station. Pathan’s friend Ajay Chacale told Mid-Day about the incident. “We had all met after a long time when Sajit bought burgers, French fries and soft drinks for all of us. He spent around Rs. 521 on these. As soon as Pathan bit into his burger, he began coughing and we assumed something was stuck in his throat”, Chacale recalled.
His friends took Pathan to a nearby hospital but as the hospital was not well equipped to handle the case, they took him to Sahyadri Hospital. Doctors advised to admit Pathan to ICU (Intensive Care Unit) but his friends did not have enough money for it. “We paid Rs 15,000 and returned home. The doctors told us the next day that the small glass pieces would exit the body through excretion and vomiting. We spent around Rs 35,000 at the hospital,” Chacale further said.
When the four took the matter to Burger King, the latter accused them of mixing glass in burger to encash on it and defame the food outlet. Later, they registered a complaint with the police. “We want to teach them a lesson,” Chacale said.
Talking about the investigation in the matter, senior inspector Deepak Lagad of Deccan Gymkhana police station said that a case has been registered and matter is under investigation. “An FIR had been registered under sections 337 (causing hurt by act endangering life or personal safety of others) and 34 (an act done with common intention) of the Indian Penal Code based on the statements and medical reports provided by the complainant”, he said. “We have checked the CCTV footage of the incident and it does prima facie appear like glass pieces were found in the burger but the matter is under investigation,” Lagad added.
