Mumbai, September 28, 2026 (Yes Punjab News)
Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut has alleged an extortion racket within Maharashtra’s Food and Drug Administration (FDA), accusing some officials of threatening hotels, restaurants and quick-commerce businesses with licence suspensions to demand bribes.
Raut made the allegations in a September 27 letter to FDA Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe, whom he praised for recent action against adulterated food, fake dairy products and unhygienic hotel kitchens. Raut, however, claimed that some officials were exploiting the enforcement drive to target smaller businesses.
The allegations have not been independently established. Raut has sought an immediate inquiry into the matter and forwarded a copy of his letter to Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis.
According to Raut, Designated Officers and Food Safety Officers are allegedly threatening establishments with licence suspension and demanding large sums for relief. He claimed the amount sought to settle a “Closing Notice” has risen from around Rs 10,000-Rs 12,000 to Rs 75,000-Rs 2 lakh following the FDA’s recent enforcement actions.
Raut identified the FDA headquarters in Bandra and its Thane office as alleged centres of the practice and said he had received complaints from business owners in Nagpur, Pune, Solapur, Wardha and Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar.
He also alleged that two Thane officials demanded Rs 17-Rs 18 lakh from a quick-commerce company for restoration of a suspended licence. Raut has sought a separate probe into the allegation. A report on his letter said there was no independent official confirmation of the claim at the time.
Raut further questioned action based on unverified social media complaints and alleged that smaller food businesses face stricter scrutiny than larger pharmaceutical companies.
He has urged Mundhe to investigate the alleged “Closing Notice rate card”, ensure physical verification before raids based on customer complaints, take disciplinary action against officials found bypassing due process and publicly disclose details of licence suspensions and restorations.
The letter comes amid an intensified FDA enforcement drive under Mundhe, which has included action against hundreds of pharmaceutical establishments and seizures of illegal medicines and cosmetics.
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