A food vendor at Chandigarh Railway Station has been fined Rs 30,000 after being found guilty of violating the Food Safety and Standards Act. The penalty was imposed by Chief Judicial Magistrate (CJM) Sachin Yadav for serving tomato sauce deemed “unsafe for human consumption” with bread pakoras and samosas.
The case against Sushil Kumar of Classic Caterers was initiated based on a complaint by Chandigarh Food Safety Officer (FSO) DP Singh. In August 2014, during an inspection at Platform Number 2, the FSO discovered Kumar serving tomato sauce from a 5-liter plastic container that lacked proper labeling. Kumar claimed the sauce was purchased at Rs 25 per liter from the open market, but he failed to provide a purchase bill.
The FSO team purchased two liters of the tomato sauce for Rs 50 from Kumar. The sauce was divided and tested, revealing 40 drops of formalin in each part. The sample was sent to the Punjab Food Analyst in Chandigarh on August 7, 2014, and declared unsafe for human consumption by a report dated August 19, 2024. Subsequent re-checks confirmed the sauce did not meet the Food Safety Act regulations.
During the trial, Kumar’s defense argued that procedural flaws existed in the sample collection and that the sample could have deteriorated due to hot and humid weather. CJM Sachin Yadav acknowledged these points but stated that Kumar had a duty to ensure the food met safety standards. The court ruled that Kumar was guilty and imposed the fine but acquitted Ravinder Singh, a nominee of Classic Caterers, due to insufficient evidence linking him to the adulterated sauce.
