Bhopal:
Madhya Pradesh Minister for Public Health and Medical Education, Narendra Shivaji Patel, allegedly triggered a surprise food safety raid on a local restaurant late Sunday night – not over health concerns, but after allegedly failing to secure a table. While the minister has denied the allegations, the state Chamber of Commerce has expressed outrage and said they would write to Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
The incident unfolded at the popular “Quality Restaurant” in Patel Nagar, where the minister, reportedly fresh from attending the wedding reception of Assembly Speaker Narendra Singh Tomar’s son on Sunday, arrived with his family.
Dressed in formal attire rather than the usual political garb, Mr Patel was not recognised by the busy restaurant staff. They informed him that all tables were booked and asked him to wait.
Enraged, the minister allegedly called officials from the Food Safety Department, claiming hygiene violation.
Within minutes, a full team was on-site. By 11:15 pm, the kitchen was under inspection, and five samples – including of oil, paneer, and mawa – were collected.
Witnesses said the hotel staff started apologising as officials swept the kitchen. A video of the raid, showing Mr Patel giving instructions and the restaurant operator being pushed aside, has since been widely circulated.
The local business community is hugely upset.
Representatives from the Chamber of Commerce and other trade organisations rushed to the restaurant late at night, calling the action “dictatorship” and “hooliganism”.
“This is not governance. This is misuse of power,” said Chamber President Dr Praveen Agarwal.
“We will write to the Prime Minister and Chief Minister demanding a high-level inquiry and the dismissal of Minister Patel,” he added.
When Gwalior’s Guardian minister Tulsi Silavat and Energy Minister Pradyuman Singh tried to mediate and de-escalate, Mr Patel doubled down, calling the restaurant a “den of adulteration” and slamming the Chamber of Commerce for “shielding wrongdoing”.
When contacted, Mr Patel denied the allegations, terming them “baseless” and part of a “conspiracy to avoid legal action”.
“I didn’t go there to eat. I had already eaten at the wedding. This was an inspection. It is my working style – I take surprise action wherever I go,” he said.
He also said the hype around the seating issue was “irrelevant and laughable”.
“You really think a minister won’t get a table?” he said, chuckling.
He further claimed the Gwalior-Chambal area has become a “hotspot of adulteration” and vowed to continue such surprise inspections.
This isn’t Mr Patel’s first brush with controversy.
Just a year ago, the police in Bhopal had filed a case against his son Abhigyan Patel, allegedly for creating a ruckus. The minister had broken down in the assembly over the First Information Report, accusing the system of targeting his family.
