Rameshwaram Café Owners Booked After Passenger Finds Worm in Meal at Bengaluru Airport Outlet
Rameshwaram Café Owners Booked After Passenger Finds Worm in Meal at Bengaluru Airport Outlet
Bengaluru Police file FIR after 19-year-old passenger reports finding a worm in his meal at the Kempegowda Airport outlet.
A case has been registered against the owners of the popular Rameshwaram Café chain after a young flyer alleged he found a worm in the food served to him at the brand’s outlet inside Kempegowda International Airport’s Terminal 1. Police have booked founder Raghavendra Rao, his wife Divya Raghavendra Rao, and senior executive Sumanth Lakshminarayan under multiple sections of the Bharatiya Nyaya Sanhita for food adulteration, cheating, criminal conspiracy, and destruction of evidence.
According to the FIR, 19-year-old complainant Nikhil N. Naresh purchased pongal from the café around 7.42am on July 24. He claimed he discovered a superworm in the dish and immediately informed the staff. Though the staff offered a replacement, he refused. Other customers reportedly recorded videos and photos of the bowl, which later circulated among airport passengers.
Nikhil then proceeded to board his scheduled Guwahati flight at 8.45am. The next day, he came across news reports stating that a representative of the café had accused him of demanding Rs 25 lakh and threatening the owners—a claim he denied. He stated that flight records show he was mid-air at 10.27am on the same day, proving there was no interaction with any of the numbers mentioned in the counter-complaint.
The FIR notes that Bengaluru Airport Police examined CCTV footage between 7.30am and 8.00am, along with the boarding pass, flight documents, and call data. Investigators stated the serving of contaminated food is a serious food-safety breach, and the complainant alleges the café’s management filed a false extortion complaint to deflect responsibility and damage his reputation.
Based on the findings, police invoked provisions relating to adulteration of food meant for sale, cheating, criminal intimidation, criminal conspiracy, and tampering with evidence. The airport police station is continuing further investigation into how the worm entered the food, the handling procedures at the airport outlet, and the motive behind the alleged counter-complaint by the café’s senior officials.
The Rameshwaram Café chain, which has expanded rapidly in recent years, has not yet issued a detailed public statement following the FIR. The case has sparked debate online, with many users discussing food safety at high-traffic airport outlets and the legal accountability of major franchise owners.
