One of London’s top curry houses in the City was temporarily shut by officials for allegedly employing illegal workers.
Family-owned Punjabi restaurant Tayyabs, in Whitechapel was closed since last Tuesday till Thursday after being raided by immigration officers. Officials served a closure notice due to “outstanding civil penalty fines amounting to £95,000” after previous offences.
The East London food joint had first opened its doors in 1972. It is a popular joint among bankers and professionals, more as the restaurant does not serve alcohol, but allows customers to carry their own alcohol, making it a cheaper option.
Following a raid by the Home Office’s Immigration Enforcement agency, it was alleged that some of the 40 staff at the award-winning eatery were working illegally or lacking correct permits.
Of nine offenders that have been identified, five Pakistani nationals are being deported, the Home Office said.
A spokesman added that the eatery already owes fines of £95,000, while the latest notice to be served carries fines of up to £180,000.
Twitter went to meltdown after this news emerged, but many were found relieved when they heard the restaurant has been now reopened.
Boss Aleem Tayyab reportedly said he would now bring immigration permits checks in-house and reportedly blamed a third party for oversights which led to the shutdown. He said his staff are mostly British, but also originally from Bangladesh, Pakistan, India and Eastern Europe.
Mr Tayyab said: “We’re incredibly busy but now we’ve realised that now I need to sit down with one of my brothers to do the recruitment and all the compliance checks ourselves now rather than getting a third party to do it.
“It’s been devastating for us, we’ve never been closed for this long and we have to put our house in order.
“We’re very sorry for the inconvenience to our customers and we’re looking forward to seeing them soon.”
