Rajkot’s Hotel-Restaurant Dining Ban Today: 1,000 Establishments Closed Due to Protest, RMC Faces Allegations of Demanding ₹5 Lakh
Following a fire incident near TRP Game Zone in Rajkot, hotels and restaurants lacking Fire NOC and Building Use Permission have been sealed. Consequently, over a thousand hotels, restaurants, banquet halls, and party plots in the city have been closed.
The Rajkot Hoteliers Association has taken the initiative to enforce these closures. Mr. Mehul Patel, head of the Rajkot Hoteliers Association, has criticized the Rs. 5 lakh penalty imposed by RMC to reopen the seals.
Closure of 600 Hotels and Restaurants in Rajkot
Today, on July 10th, over a thousand hotels, restaurants, banquet halls, and party plots in Rajkot have been sealed. Mr. Mehul Patel, head of the Rajkot Hoteliers Association, stated that the reason for today’s closures is that smaller units do not have the possibility of a fire.
Whether it’s a restaurant of 50 by 50 feet or a party plot, there has been no incident of fire in Gujarat so far. Currently, fire NOC and BU permissions are required. Therefore, officials have come forward to display their work and show authenticity without reading the news.
Misconduct of Officials
It has been disclosed that there is misconduct among these officials. They have stated that these rules are not being enforced in Rajkot, and everything was functioning as usual. Currently, where these properties are being sealed, demands of Rs. 5-5 lakh are being made.
An official under the name of Rajkot Municipal Corporation was demanding Rs. 5 lakh. It has been informed that this individual has applied in RMC, and after his application, the municipal commissioner is sealing it.
Sealing Hotels and Restaurants is Not Appropriate
Our demand remains that the immediate sealing of hotels and restaurants by the Rajkot Municipal Corporation should be temporarily halted. If there is pressure from the CMO, the officials of RMC can inform the Chief Minister. We need to meet Municipal Commissioner D.P. Desai and understand the 1986 law. When we said that RMC’s building does not have a fire NOC, they got angry at us.
We said that your hotel or restaurant is a source of income, so these rules should apply there, not here. If there is corruption worth crores in RMC, does that not affect income sources? All hotels and restaurants have fire extinguishing equipment. However, it is not appropriate to seal hotels and restaurants just for the lack of a fire NOC.
Former Project Officer Denies Allegations of ₹5 Lakh Bribery
Amishaben Vaidya, who served as a Project Officer at RMC from 2011 to 2016 and later started her consulting work, denied allegations of accepting ₹5 lakh bribe when applying to lift the seal on a hotel-restaurant. After the TRP Games Zone fire incident, Parasbhai, director of Conflict’s Theatre, applied for seal opening, which I supported.
Following this, applications were filed for opening the second wife and dosa dot com restaurant, for which I applied for a temporary seal. The allegation of ₹5 lakh bribery is false. The second wife and dosa dot com restaurant lacks a fire NOC, structural approval, and compliance. When questioned about this issue, Parasbhai informed that we had met the Municipal Commissioner.
Upon investigation by Nandani of RMC, it was found that the report given to me regarding the closure was incorrect. If three properties can be opened, the seals of other properties can be opened. I have appealed to the Municipal Commissioner and Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel regarding this matter.
