AN INDIAN restaurant has had its licence revoked after it was raided by the Home Office twice for employing illegal workers. 

Taj Mahal, on Cavendish Street in Barrow, was visited by the Home Office in April 2023 and October 2022 as enforcement officers suspected that people were there without a right to work. 

From the October raid, the Home Office said it resulted in the arrest of two Afghan men and one Bangladeshi. On April 20, a Bangladeshi man was arrested on suspicion of working illegally. 

The restaurant faced a fine of £10,000 over the arrest from the April raid and £30,000 in the October raid, according to the Home Office. 

One of the conditions of retaining a licence is the prevention of crime and disorder. The Home Office sought to prove at a licensing meeting of Westmorland and Furness Council that the Taj Mahal had not achieved this licensing objective. 

The Home Office representative Josh Johns told the committee said that the licence should 'ultimately be revoked'.

He said: "There have been two visits in six months. For me there are two strands to this - not meeting the licence objectives builds a picture of the business and how it is trading itself. Secondly as of yesterday the fine still has not been paid."

READ MORE: Man arrested after immigration raid at Barrow's Taj Mahal restaurant

Cllr Tony Callister asked Mr Johns before deliberation if there were no alternative means of providing support to the business to meet compliance before taking a 'drastic' action such as revoking the licence. 

Mr Johns said that all support had been given. While deliberations happened Mr Johns said that the Home Office gets criticism for heavy-handed enforcement but on this occasion had given the business a second chance to comply. 

The licence holder Abu Nasim Mohammad Shamim told the meeting he was the landlord and not in charge of checking who was employed.

He said: "Think of the 14 livelihoods that rely on this business. Nothing will happen to me. I am thinking of the livelihoods, the families, what is going to happen to them? 

"I cannot keep in touch with everyone. Staff can change it is very difficult. I am not the supervisor who was responsible, I wasn't responsible to check this day by day. As a landlord, I can do that bit by bit I can't be there 24 hours." 

Cllr Jarvis confirmed with the legal representative at the meeting that the decision over the licence should be about meeting the objectives, rather than taking into account people's livelihoods.

The licence was revoked but it will not mean that it has to close down.

But it cannot sell alcohol, play live or recorded music, and provide hot food or drink between 11pm and 5am.