2 restaurant owners in Bengaluru held for selling beef as mutton

BENGALURU: Two men were arrested by city police for allegedly deceiving customers by serving beef while claiming it was mutton.

The accused are Jijoo Alexander from Byrati village and Shibu KB from Tippanna Layout. Hailing from Kerala and residing in a rented house in Byrati, they owned Aisiri Hub Kayaloram Restaurant at Bommenahalli, police said.

An officer said the police had received multiple complaints from customers alleging that Kayaloram restaurant was serving beef while marketing it as mutton.

“Beef was not listed anywhere on the restaurant’s menu. However, several customers alleged that they had been served beef when they ordered mutton dishes. Based on these complaints, we deployed a plainclothes police officer to verify the allegations,” the officer said.

Posing as a customer, the officer purchased mutton dishes from the restaurant. The samples were then examined with the assistance of officials from the animal husbandry and veterinary sciences department. “The tests confirmed that the meat was beef. Following verification, we arrested the restaurant owners,” the officer added.

They were booked under the Cow Slaughter and Cattle Prevention Act-2020 and sent to judicial custody at Central Prison. Another partner, Abhilash, is absconding.