Cafe Moshe's has turned into a raging mosh(e) pit, with founder Moshe Shek battling the new owners for allegedly impersonating him and forcing him to answer for BMC licence violations. A popular name in the food industry, the chain of eateries has been around in the city since 2004. Recently, however, Moshe's has run into trouble with the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) department, as well the municipal authorities. The problems have followed the founder, Shek, who had to cough up a fine of Rs 13,000 last week for the chain's violations, even though he claims he is no longer part of the company. Sensing foul play, he is now planning to sue the ASDA group, current owners of Moshe's. The violations included using excess area, not producing medical certificates of the workers or the mandatory no objection certificate (NOC) from the chief fire officer.

The matter came to light when Shek received a summons notice from the Metropolitan Magistrate's court in Shindewadi, and was asked to appear before the magistrate on August 7. Shek said that he rushed to the G-South ward office to enquire about the matter and there he learnt that the BMC had found three violations at the Moshe's outlet at Palladium in Lower Parel. "I was shocked to learn that the health licence had been renewed in my name, even though I have nothing to do with the company. I tried to explain to them that I had sold the company back in 2013, and resigned from the board in July last year. But they told me that it was too late to do anything and asked me to appear in court," Shek recalled. In 2013, he had sold the majority stake in the company to a private equity firm called New Silk Route (NSR). Even though he remained on the board of directors, Shek claimed that he had no operational involvement in the company. In July 2017, NSR sold the majority stake to ASDA Media and Entertainment Private Limited.