India: Dead baby rat found in chicken dish; restaurant manager, two cooks arrested

A manager and two cooks from a Maharashtra-based restaurant were arrestedafter a customer on Monday lodged a complaint aboutfinding a rat in his meal.

Anurag Singh, a bank executive, found the rat in the chicken dish he ordered at Papa Pancho Da Dhaba, a restaurant famous for almost two decades for its Punjabi fare.

Bandra police officials confirmed the arrest of the restaurant manager Vivian Sequeira and two cooks who were booked under sections 272 (adulteration of food meant to be sold) and 336 (rash or negligent behaviour that endangers a person's life) under the Indian Penal Code.

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What happened?

Singh recalled that he went shopping on Sunday and then to a Punjabi restaurant for dinner. "The chicken curry that I ordered seemed to have a piece of meat that looked much lighter in colour. When I picked it out with a spoon, it turned out to be a small rat."

Furthermore, Singh said when he complained to the staff, they apologised but the manager didn't come forward for some 45 minutes. The bank manager added that he started feeling sick right after he discovered a rat in the curry, which he had already consumed and consulted a doctor on the way home and took medicines as prescribed.

However, the restaurant manager insisted that suchan incident has not occurred in the last 22 years. He saidthat the food is checked multiple times by the staff members so that no such thing ever happens. Sequeira added that he feels the customer did it intentionally to extort money.

Devrak Gore, the advocate for the restaurant, said that Singh came with one more person and was quite drunk and had almost finished the food when they pointed out the rat in the dish after the staff asked them not to consumealcohol.

"They even asked the manager whether he would like to settle the matter. Later, they approached the cops. They have ruined the lives of two poor people who are our cooks and do not have any criminal cases against them."

He alleged that the cops didn’t go by the book in this case and did notincludeany FDA officials in their investigation.

"They have not even taken any samples for testing. Nor was there a medical test of the complainant who claims to have eaten the allegedly contaminated curry. It was much later in the night that they asked the chef to get it to the station. Since it was not sealed and taken in front of witnesses, there are chances that it could be mishandled."

According to Hindustan Times, the three have been released on bail, while an investigation into the meat supplier of the restaurant is still on.

(With inputs from agencies)

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