Mumbai:
The owner of Karachi Bakery in suburban Bandra has said in reply to a `legal notice’ by an MNS leader that the bakery’s founder was a victim of Partition, and its name can not hurt Indian sentiments. Haji Saif Shaikh, a local leader of the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, had sent a legal notice to the owner, saying that the word Karachi hurts sentiments of ordinary Indians and the Indian Army because it is a Pakistani city.
The bakery should be renamed and the signboard should be in Marathi, he had demanded. In its response, the bakery owner said it was established by a Sindhi-Hindu family which migrated from Pakistan, and the brand is now recognized globally.
They did not use the name Karachi to hurt the feelings of Indians. In fact, bakery founder Khanchand Ramani had experienced violence by pro-Pakistan elements during Partition, it said. Being a “victim of violence espoused by Pakistan”, they can never make any statement or do anything that can hurt feelings of fellow Indians, the bakery said.
“It is incorrect to suggest that my client (bakery owner) has disrespected the sacrifice of our soldiers. The bakery has always been Indian and will continue to do so. Therefore, every allegations questioning my client’s loyalty towards India is incorrect and unwarranted,” the reply said.
Earlier this month, a Shiv Sena worker had taken objection to the name of a shop, `Karachi Sweets’, located in Bandra. The Shiv Sena had later said it was not the party’s stand. PTI
