A vegan woman in Bengaluru has received one lakh rupees in compensation after she unexpectedly bit into a prawn hidden inside a sandwich she ordered as vegan. The Bengaluru Urban District Consumer Disputes Redressal Commission held both Swiggy and the restaurant Paris Panini responsible for causing emotional, cultural, and psychological distress.
On 10 July 2024, 37 year old Nisha G placed an online order through Swiggy. She selected a vegan sandwich from Paris Panini, a brand she had trusted earlier. When she took the first bite, she noticed a strange texture. She checked the filling and found pieces of prawn inside. As a lifelong vegetarian who later turned vegan for ethical reasons, she felt shaken and traumatised.
The shock triggered a panic attack and she later performed cleansing rituals at home because she believed she had violated her spiritual and ethical discipline. She said the incident left her humiliated and disturbed.
The day after the incident, she went to the Paris Panini outlet to report what had happened. The manager admitted that the kitchen made an error during a heavy rush. He offered to replace the sandwich, but Nisha refused the offer. She told the staff that the issue was not about a new sandwich but about trust, dignity, and the emotional impact of accidentally consuming an animal product.
She later sent legal notices to both Swiggy and Paris Panini on 20 July, but she did not receive a meaningful response from either side. Feeling ignored, she filed a consumer complaint on 22 August 2024. She asked for two lakh rupees in compensation for negligence and the emotional harm she suffered.
Swiggy argued in the commission that it only works as a technology platform that connects customers to restaurants. The platform claimed that the contract existed only between the customer and the restaurant. Paris Panini admitted the mix up but insisted that the mistake was unintentional. The restaurant also remarked that a serious vegan would not usually choose their outlet since they serve both vegetarian and non vegetarian food.
The consumer commission rejected these arguments. It said that sending non vegetarian food to a vegan customer is not a simple mistake. The order carried emotional and spiritual importance for the woman and the error caused significant psychological distress. The commission also noted that both Swiggy and the restaurant had a duty to handle the situation responsibly after the complaint.
The commission ordered Swiggy and Paris Panini to jointly pay one lakh rupees. The amount includes fifty thousand rupees as compensation, fifty thousand rupees for mental agony, five thousand rupees for litigation costs, and a refund of one hundred and forty six rupees for the sandwich. The refund will carry twelve percent interest from the date of the order.
(Rh/ARC/MSM)