Chennai: Hoping to escape cooking by eating out on Monday (May 16), a government holiday?
You may not be that lucky since a majority of restaurants and eating joints here are expected to remain shut on the polling date.
The Election Commission has instructed the state government to ensure that restaurants are closed on Monday to ensure people working there are able to exercise their franchise. Though a majority of restaurants will comply with the order, there are some who will defy.
Residents are still finding it difficult to digest the fact that their holiday is going to be spent at home, instead of enjoying a lunch outside. “I was desperately hoping to rest this entire weekend. It is so disheartening that I will have to work as hard on Monday as any other week day,” Malini M, a housewife, said.
“We are tuned in to obey each law that is imposed on us without protesting and this will be just another one,” said Nissy Sara George, a college student.
Despite the government circulating the notice for over a week now, many restaurant owners were unaware of the order when DC met them to seek their views. “We have six branches in Chennai. We will remain shut as is required of us. Though we will incur a loss, we respect the order and will follow it,” Farhad T. K., manager at Royappetah branch of Zaitoon, a high-class restaurant, said.
Hotel owners and managers say Monday being a public holiday could have attracted more footfalls at their restaurants, but admit that the government order has to be followed.
“We have 34 branches around Tamil Nadu and we will surely remain shut until 7 pm on Monday. We were initially hoping for a profit this weekend. However, now we are expecting loss in crores,” said Kamala Kannan, creative-in-charge, Hotel Saravana Bhavan at Egmore.
“The Election Commission is serious about the order this year, as opposed to previous elections. The notice was issued ahead of time and restaurants that fail to comply will face serious consequences,” said R. Srinivasan, secretary, Tamil Nadu Hotels’ Association.
Despite the order, there were some restaurant owners who wished to remain stubborn. “I feel it is unnecessary to shut our restaurant as most of our employees are from Nepal and they will not be voting,” said Amarnath, Supervisor, Hotel Mahaganapathi, West Mambalam, who is confident of keeping the restaurant open.
