FDA officer forced to eat expired biscuits by mob
What's the story
A shocking incident unfolded in Chhatrapati Sambhajinagar district of Maharashtra when a Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officer was cornered by an angry mob. According to NDTV, the crowd accused him of allegedly accepting a bribe to shield a local shopkeeper selling expired food products. They demanded that he eat expired biscuits from the shop. The confrontation was filmed.
Background
The incident was triggered by a child falling ill
The incident was triggered when a two-year-old child fell ill reportedly after eating a savory snack mix from a local shop.
The child suffered dizziness and was later hospitalized.
The child's family and other residents then complained to the FDA office about the expired products being sold at the shop.
Inspection findings
The shopkeeper removed the savory snack mix before the inspection
An FDA officer inspected the shop after receiving complaints but found that the savory snack mix was removed before his arrival.
However, he did find several packets of expired biscuits on sale.
Despite seizing these products, no strict action was perceived to be taken against the shopkeeper, which further fueled public anger and accusations of bribery against the officer.
Forced consumption
The crowd dared the officer to eat the biscuits
As the crowd's anger grew, they surrounded the FDA officer and dared him to eat the expired biscuits if they were safe.
Some members of the crowd even tried to force these biscuits into his mouth, accusing him of protecting the shopkeeper.
This incident comes as part of a larger crackdown by Maharashtra's FDA on food safety violations statewide.