Mumbai: Iconic Karachi bakery in Mumbai has shut down owing to loss in business with the ongoing Coronavirus pandemic. However, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) that had clashed with the Bakery over its “Pakistani” name earlier has taken the credit for the closure of the Karachi Bakery. The owners of the Bakery have, however, maintained that the bakery was shut “after the old lease agreement lapsed”. The have categorically refuted any claims of bakery being shut due to the renaming controversy.
“We shut shop after the old lease agreement lapsed. Our landlord had been demanding a higher sum as rent which was unviable for us. The lockdown had already caused business volumes to drop,” The Times of India quoted bakery’s manager Rameshwar Waghmare as saying. “There was no reason to capitulate by changing our name. The bakery was a legitimate business with all valid licences and approvals. Our decision is based on business factors. Let others take credit for it if they wish,” said Waghmare.
Soon after the closure of the bakery, MNS Vice-president Haji Saif Shaikh said in a tweet, “After massive protest for its name, Karachi Bakery finally closes its only shop in Mumbai.”
Notably, Karachi bakery is among the most famous bakeries in Mumbai. It is owned by the Sindhi Hindu Ramnani family, who came to India following Partition. The family is yet to decide if they will rent a new space or shut down operations of the bakery completely in Mumbai.