Bombay High Court Revokes FDA Suspension of Five MCA Eateries
The Bombay High Court on Saturday revoked the suspension of all food establishments at the Mumbai Cricket Association (MCA) premises after the Maharashtra Food and Drugs Administration (FDA) found 88 percent compliance with food safety norms.
A division bench of Acting Chief Justice Ravindra Ghuge and Justice Gautam Ankhad allowed the five outlets to resume serving food on a regular basis. The eateries had been barred from normal operations after the FDA suspended their food safety licences following an inspection on August 20.
The court was hearing five separate petitions filed by the MCA challenging the suspension under the Food Safety and Standards Act. The association argued that the immediate suspension caused a complete shutdown of food and beverage services without prior notice, a show-cause notice, or an opportunity to be heard.
The FDA had suspended the licences over alleged hygiene issues, citing deficiencies in food handling, storage, refrigeration, and sanitation across five outlets: the Permit Room, Pavilion, Mediterranean, Oriental Swing, and Clubway and Pastry Counter.
During an earlier hearing, the MCA contested the action, stating that the initial suspension order failed to specify the alleged deficiencies and was issued despite high compliance. The bench noted that unlike other standard enforcement actions, the auto-generated report provided by the FDA lacked a compliance score in percentage terms.
On August 25, the High Court directed the FDA to conduct a fresh inspection of all five establishments and restricted the outlets to serving only tea and coffee from vending machines in the interim.
FDA officials carried out the re-inspection on Friday and recorded an 88 percent compliance rate with food safety standards. After the updated findings were submitted to the bench on Saturday, the court formally revoked the suspension orders, allowing the eateries to resume regular operations.
