Islamabad police pulls shutters on La Maison for serving illegal alcohol, gambling and not allowing Pakistanis ‘the pleasure’
A French restaurant running in a posh locality in the federal capital was raided and shut-down by police on Tuesday following a public outcry over its policy of not allowing Pakistanis in.
‘La Maison’, running out of Islamabad’s Sector F7-1, was not allowing Pakistanis in, citing the French style of cooking that uses wine. Also, the food was not halal and even pork was being served.
The controversial policy had led to a storm on various social media networks, with many comparing the policy to apartheid and the infamous colonial boards outside clubs in India during British rule.
The momentum against the restaurant started on Twitter. The restaurant-owner Philippe Lafforgue had said prior to the raid, “What can I do? I am just trying to respect the local culture. Pakistanis with dual-nationality are allowed”.
Later, he said, “But after consulting the authorities, my advisor and my partner, I am telling you it is impossible to open a place to the public when we serve non-halal food here. I cannot change the recipes of French food,” he had said in a letter.
He said, “So we will stand by our policies. Everybody is welcome, even Pakistani people with a dual-nationality. I don’t want to hurt the sensitivities of Muslims.”
He said he had “just opened this place to give to the people an authentic French cuisine. It is not compatible with the faith of the people in Pakistan, so it will remain private”.
This is not the first such incident in Islamabad. In 2009, another French restaurant The Cordon Rouge hung a “foreigners only” sign, which was later removed after protests.
According to police sources, a huge quantity of illegal liquor was recovered from the restaurant. The raid was carried out by the police with TV camera crews in tow.
The small restaurant running out of Lafforgue’s house, was a hit with the expats. One had to make prior booking, giving international passport details.
‘La Maison’ was similar to the New York-style ‘Secret Restaurants’.
“We got complaints about this place practicing a colonial-style ‘Dogs and Indians Not Allowed’ policy in the middle of Islamabad, serving only foreigners,” said Yasir Afridi, an assistant superintendent of the Islamabad Police.
“So I personally called in to make a reservation, and was rejected when I said I was a Pakistani,” said Afridi. “The next step was obviously to check the place out. We found over 300 bottles of non-licensed alcohol and even a casino table.”
The police charged Lafforgue with “unlicensed alcohol,” a crime in Pakistan.
“How can you live on our soil and treat us like this,” said Afridi. “No rules allow such behavior. This is not the nineteenth century.”
Lafforgue is still defending his position.
“The cops knew I wasn’t around to show my documents, and that’s why they timed the raid to perfection,” he said. “But now I am fighting it. I am also writing a letter to [Prime Minister] Nawaz Sharif, who is both a fan of fine food and for creating a good atmosphere for foreigners to invest in Pakistan. I hope he listens to my case.”
The Islamabad police also insists that Lafforgue has a criminal record in Lahore.
Sources told Pakistan Today in Lahore that Lafforgue is allegedly running a huge bootlegging operation in the city from Bedian area.
