By: ChandrashekarBhat
By Chandrashekar Bhat
A GROUP of police officers in Pakistan flipped out when a takeaway joint refused to hand over burgers free of charge and detained all 19 staff of the restaurant.
Workers at the trendy chain Johnny & Jugnu in Lahore were rounded up and held for seven hours overnight on Saturday (13), leaving behind unattended kitchens and hungry customers.
“This is not the first time something like this has happened with our kitchen teams at our restaurant, but we want to make sure this is the last,” the fast-food chain said in a statement published on social media.
The trouble started when the staff at the restaurant refused a “request from a very high-profile special guest”.
Most of those detained were young people, including many university students, the restaurant staff said.
Following an outcry, nine police officers involved were suspended, senior provincial police official Inam Ghani said on Twitter.
Pakistan’s police officers are often accused of demanding kickbacks from local businesses.
Prime minister Imran Khan has called for a reform of Punjab’s police force, saying “cronies” had been appointed by politicians to control police stations.
