A food safety case in Maharashtra has led to an FIR against more than 10 executives linked to Reliance Consumer Products, Reliance Retail, Zomato’s Hyperpure and quick-commerce platform Blinkit after the state Food and Drugs Administration seized food products worth Rs 48.09 lakh during a multi-district crackdown.
The Maharashtra FDA alleged that expired, damaged and rejected food products had been diverted and sold. The FIR was registered at Shanti Nagar police station in Thane under relevant provisions of the Food Safety and Standards Act, 2006, and the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita, 2023.
Blinkit chief executive officer Albinder Dhindsa has been named in the FIR. Executives of Reliance Consumer Products named in the case include V Subramaniam, Ashok Kumar Singh, Vijay Bhikaji Kharmale and Nilesh Ramdasrao Deshmukh.
The action places renewed focus on how food products are stored, screened and moved through urban retail and quick-commerce networks. These platforms rely on dark stores and high-frequency deliveries to supply groceries and packaged food to city consumers, making inventory controls and product-expiry checks central to consumer safety.
Reliance Consumer Products, the fast-moving consumer goods arm of Reliance Industries, makes products including Campa soft drinks, Joyland flavoured milk, SIL jams and Lotus chocolates. The FIR covers executives associated with the company and Reliance Retail, as well as entities connected with Hyperpure and Blinkit, according to the report.
The Maharashtra FDA has been conducting a broader food-safety crackdown across the state. During the operation, several well-known restaurants, clubs and dark stores operated by quick-commerce platforms, including Domino’s Pizza, Olympia Coffee House and Cafe Mondegar, were reportedly sent notices for hygiene violations or had their licences suspended.
The latest case follows other enforcement actions involving food facilities and retail channels. The FDA’s seizure of products valued at Rs 48.09 lakh indicates the scale of the material involved in the investigation, although the allegations in the FIR will have to be established through the legal process.
Emails sent to Reliance Consumer Products and Zomato remained unanswered at the time of publication, according to the report. The authorities’ next steps will determine the scope of the investigation and any further action against the companies or individuals named in the FIR.
