Cafe Moshe's founder complains as new owners fraudulently renew license

Cafe Moshe's operates under an escalator at Palladium Mall, High Street Phoenix, Lower Parel. Pic/Ashish Raje

Cafe Moshe's has turned into a raging mosh(e) pit, with founder Moshe Shek battling the new owners for allegedly impersonating him and forcing him to answer for BMC licence violations. A popular name in the food industry, the chain of eateries has been around in the city since 2004. Recently, however, Moshe's has run into trouble with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) department, as well the municipal authorities. The problems have followed the founder, Shek, who had to cough up a fine of Rs 13,000 last week for the chain's violations, even though he claims he is no longer part of the company. Sensing foul play, he is now planning to sue the ASDA group, current owners of Moshe's. The violations included using excess area, not producing medical certificates of the workers or the mandatory no objection certificate (NOC) from the chief fire officer.

The matter came to light when Shek received a summons notice from the Metropolitan Magistrate's court in Shindewadi, and was asked to appear before the magistrate on August 7. Shek said that he rushed to the G-South ward office to enquire about the matter and there he learnt that the BMC had found three violations at the Moshe's outlet at Palladium in Lower Parel. "I was shocked to learn that the health licence had been renewed in my name, even though I have nothing to do with the company. I tried to explain to them that I had sold the company back in 2013, and resigned from the board in July last year. But they told me that it was too late to do anything and asked me to appear in court," Shek recalled. In 2013, he had sold the majority stake in the company to a private equity firm called New Silk Route (NSR). Even though he remained on the board of directors, Shek claimed that he had no operational involvement in the company. In July 2017, NSR sold the majority stake to ASDA Media and Entertainment Private Limited.

Moshe Shek

Impersonation
Shek appeared before the court, and his lawyer advised him to plead guilty to avoid a lengthy trial or, worse, spend time in jail. Unable to see another way out, he paid the fine. In order to prevent any future issue, he submitted a letter to the BMC on August 10, alleging that the current management of Moshe's had fraudulently renewed their health licence in his name in March. "The notice that the BMC served mentions that I was present at the time of inspection, and that I had identified myself as well. But I wasn't even in town that day, and I can prove it. Someone possibly posed as me, and the BMC officials never bothered to check either," he said. Shek later also described his harrowing experience on social media. Civic officials said that the health licence was renewed online, and they were not aware that the restaurant had new owners. "I will look into the matter and I'll ensure that appropriate action is taken," said Devendra Jain, assistant municipal commissioner of G-South ward.

Shek calls the FDA
Barring the three restaurants in Mumbai, the other Moshe's outlets rely on a central kitchen at a factory in Turbhe, where all the baked goods are manufactured. "I immediately wrote to the FDA to inform them that I was not related to the company. They found that the factory didn't have a licence and a raid of the premises was conducted," said Shek. He alleged that the FDA officials found a filthy kitchen where the containers hadn't been washed in a long time.

Confirming Shek's claims, Chandrashekhar Salunkhe, FDA joint commissioner, said that after receiving a complaint about the factory, they had conducted an inspection of the premises. "We found that the factory was running without permissions, among other violations. They've been asked to shut down the factory until they rectify the violations," said the official. Shek is currently consulting with his legal team and he will challenge the court order due to which he had to pay the fine. He is also planning to initiate legal action against the ASDA group for fraudulently renewing licences in his name.

03
No. of violations at the Palladium outlet

Rs 13k
Fine Moshe Shek had to pay

09%
Shek's share in the company

Violations galore

• Using excess area at Lower Parel outlet
• No medical certificates for workers
• No NOC from chief fire officer
• No FDA licence for factory
• Unhygienic conditions at factory

The other side
Members of ASDA group rubbished the allegations made by Shek. The company's legal representative pointed out that Shek had resigned without the approval of the other board members, and he still owned nine percent of the company's shares. Shek, however, insisted that he still owned the shares because he was forced to keep them. The ASDA official alleged that Shek had long been uncomfortable about his name being associated with the company. "The brand licensing of the company is with us completely, and we are trying to turn around the company's losses. He has been trying to make vindictive claims to shut down our business," he said. He further claimed that Shek was aware of the licence being in his name. "The licence was renewed in his name since he still owns shares in the company," said the representative.

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