Mr Gurbaxish Singh Kohli,

Vice President, Federation of Hotel & Restaurant Associations of India (FHRAI)

“The Hon’ble Delhi High Court’s order granting a stay on the CCPA’s recent guidelines has come as a major relief to the hospitality industry. FHRAI had filed its writ petition in the Delhi HC contesting CCPA’s guidelines as it was curtailing hospitality establishments’ right to conduct business in the manner suitable to them. As per today’s order, all directions under the guidelines in para 7 have been stayed subject to no service charge to be levied on takeaways, and all restaurants shall prominently display in the restaurant that Service Charge shall be levied. FHRAI stated that it is entirely the prerogative of a hotel or a restaurant to decide on the structure of the menu and its pricing, to best suit the business model. Further, Hotels are bound by wages contract with employees which specify benefits of Service Charge. The new guidelines are against the very grain of practising business in a fair environment and erroneously proceeded on the basis that Service Charge is akin to a tip /gratuity and therefore optional. FHRAI & its members shall make all endeavour to ensure that consumers/ patrons are well informed about the levy of Service Charge. We are glad that our employees shall continue to avail agreed benefits under Service Charge.”