Mumbai: Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration (FDA) Commissioner Tukaram Mundhe has said that the agency will not spare anyone found violating food safety and advertising regulations, following notices issued to Bollywood actors Shah Rukh Khan, Ajay Devgn and Tiger Shroff over their endorsement of Vimal Elaichi.

Speaking to PTI, Mundhe said that responsibility extends across the entire advertising chain, including endorsers, advertisers, publishers and sponsors. He said the rules are applicable to all and that no one will be exempt if wrongdoing is found.

"Everybody across the chain is responsible. It applies to all. Nobody is going to be spared," Mundhe said.

The notices were issued after the FDA said the Vimal Elaichi advertisement may amount to surrogate or indirect promotion of prohibited pan masala or tobacco-related products. According to the agency, the campaign prima facie appears to promote a product linked to tobacco-related sales in violation of food safety and advertising norms.

Mundhe said the matter is being examined under the Food Safety and Standards Regulations, which include provisions on misleading claims and advertising. He added that the regulations came into force in 2019 and apply to all representations made through print, electronic, social media and other platforms.

He further said endorsers must check the relevant guidelines before promoting any product.

"Whatever the product somebody is endorsing, they have to look into the guidelines and regulations of FSSAI about advertising and claims. If wrongfulness is found, we will take action against those also," he said.

The FDA has said that if an advertisement states, implies or suggests a claim that is not true, it can invite action under the regulations. Officials have also said notices will be issued to advertisers found violating the rules and they will be asked to explain why action should not be initiated.

The development comes amid a wider crackdown by the Maharashtra FDA on food safety violations across the state. The department has recently raided several quick-commerce facilities, hotels, restaurants and food outlets, and has taken action against multiple establishments linked to platforms such as Blinkit, Zepto and Instamart.

The agency also suspended the licence of Parle Agro's Chembur godown after finding expired stocks of Frooti, Appy and Apple Fizz. In a statewide inspection drive on August 13, the FDA checked 86 establishments selling or delivering food through online platforms, issued 60 improvement notices and ordered the temporary stoppage of operations at one facility.

Mundhe said the drive reflects the FDA's broader effort to ensure compliance across both food businesses and advertising practices.