India, Sept. 29 -- Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut has accused Maharashtra's Food and Drug Administration (FDA) officials of threatening hotels, restaurants and quick-commerce businesses with licence suspensions to extort money from them, alleging that bribe demands for withdrawing closure notices have risen sharply in recent months.

Raut made the allegations in a letter to FDA commissioner Tukaram Mundhe, a copy of which he posted on social media on Monday. The Rajya Sabha MP claimed that the rates for "closing notices" had risen from Rs.12,000 to Rs.75,000, and in some cases as much as Rs.2 lakh, since the 51-year-old IAS officer took charge in May, with businesses fearing strict action.

Mundhe rejected the allegations, saying the FDA ...