An Indian restaurant has had its licence suspended for three months after it was found to be employing illegal workers.

The Bas Bar in Cliffe Road, Strood – which also has a public house area – was fined £14,000 after immigration officers discovered three employees working unlawfully during a raid in May 2019.

Kent Police had requested the venue’s licence be revoked, but owner Harjot Singh persuaded Medway Council’s licensing hearing panel that sufficient changes had been made since the discovery.

He was running the business alongside Sukhbir Singh when illegal workers were being hired, but the latter has since gone his separate ways.

Harjot has since paid off the penalty using family loans, and he also demonstrated the current workforce of eight all have a right to work in the country.

He said: “This is a big mistake in my life, and I’m in a debt now for paying the fine. I’m not going back there. I’m fully aware I have to fulfil my whole licence and conditions from now on.

“It only happened because I was busy (with other aspects of the business). I should have been on top of it, but we now have the right procedures in place. I will continue to follow the new ways.”

“This is a big mistake in my life, and I’m in a debt now for paying the fine..." Harjot Singh

Councillors were dubious about whether the changes would have been made had immigration officers not visited The Bas Bar – a sentiment shared by a Kent Police licensing officer.

PC Dan Hunt added: “You were willing to allow two of the three people to work at the premises without seeing any documentation, and then withhold their wages until such time you saw it.

“I would suggest withholding of those wages could be considered exploitation. How long would that have been allowed to go on had this warrant not taken place? My concern is it would still be going on.”

Mr Singh claimed being occupied in the kitchen was the reason for the oversight, as well as other breaches including insufficient CCTV coverage, but Cllr Dan McDonald (Lab) was unsympathetic.

He responded: “Every time you’re being asked a question – where we’ve asked about training records or a lack of an incident book – all I’m hearing from you is ‘we were busy’.

“You do understand that you can’t be a licensee and run an operation, and not carry out your normal functions because you were busy?”

Despite the concerns, the panel agreed to only suspend the licence – which includes alcohol and late-night refreshment – for three months to allow Mr Singh “get the business in compliance with conditions”.

But they refused to transfer the licence from Sukhbir Singh to Harjot Singh, telling the now sole owner that he can reapply when the suspension comes to an end.

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