Pune police have ordered a pub in Koregaon Park to remain closed until further orders after an inquiry found that it continued operating beyond the city’s permitted 1.30am closing time. The establishment was found to be functioning after 2am, according to the Times of India report.
Pune police commissioner Amitesh Kumar directed officials to take action against the pub after receiving information that it was allegedly violating the operating-hours rule. The inquiry subsequently confirmed that the establishment had remained open beyond the permitted time.
The action places the enforcement of regulated closing hours for pubs, bars and restaurants at the centre of the case. In Pune, these establishments are permitted to operate only until 1.30am, and the police said the Koregaon Park pub continued functioning after that deadline.
The inquiry also examined what happened when police marshals visited the establishment at around 1.30am to check whether it had closed. The management told the marshals that the pub had shut for the night. After verifying that claim, the marshals left the premises.
The police later found that the pub had reopened shortly after the marshals’ departure. That finding led to the latest action and the order that the establishment remain shut until further orders. The report does not specify the duration of the closure or whether any additional penalties have been imposed.
The establishment had faced police action previously in January this year, following which it remained closed for a few days. It resumed operations several months later. The latest order therefore follows an earlier enforcement action against the same establishment and a subsequent finding that it had again breached the permitted operating hours.
The case highlights the administrative challenge of enforcing closing-time rules after inspections have concluded. In this instance, the police marshals’ initial verification was followed by the pub’s reported reopening, prompting a further inquiry and action by the police commissioner.
The Pune police have not, in the supplied report, announced a specific date for the pub’s reopening or disclosed further proceedings against its management. The establishment is to remain closed until further orders from the authorities.
