Whenever we want to eat a burger, the only name and the place that strikes in our minds is McDonald’s, isn’t it? However, there is a bad news for the Delhiites who are regular to McDonald’s. Nearly 43 McDonald’s outlets in Delhi will be closed down from 29^th June, Thursday, and leaving almost 1700 people jobless.

Yes, it’s true.

The closure is believed to be the result of infighting between McDonald’s itself and Connaught Plaza Restaurants Pvt Ltd (CPRL), which is an equal-partners joint venture between the US-headquartered company and Vikram Bakshi. CPRL presently runs 168 hotels all over the country. It also ran many McDonald’s outlets in North India and eastern part of the country.

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This decision of closing down the outlets has been taken in the CPRL board meeting which took place on June 28. But the relation between McDonald’s and Vikram Bakshi is not cordial between them since 2013 when Vikram Bakshi was ousted from the post of managing director and McDonald’s went to London Court of International Arbitration against Bakshi.

Why Shutting Down?

The former MD of CPRL said, “It’s unfortunate, but the operation of 43 restaurants operated by CPRL has been temporarily suspended.” Thus, many Delhiites will find their nearest outlet of the Golden Arches closed. There was a total of 55 McDonald’s outlets in Delhi before 43 of them were closed on Thursday.

A source revealed, “CPRL failed to get the mandatory regulatory health licenses renewed because of the infighting between Bakshi and McDonald’s.”

What’s McDonald’s Take?

McDonald’s India on Thursday confirmed the license expiration but also held out hope that the restaurants would be reopened. As per Harish Bijoor, a brand strategist, said in a statement: “The Eating House Licenses of a number of McDonald’s restaurants in Delhi have expired. The board of CPRL is working to obtain the required licenses. Pending this, CPRL is temporarily suspending the operations of the affected restaurants.”

The report also speculated that the closure of these outlets could be the beginning of the end of McDonald’s in India. Harish Bijoor was of the opinion that McDonald’s should look to ending its legal battles so it can shift its focus back to the rest of the business. “Every passing day is a slur on the front-end brand,” he told.

If McDonald’s indeed sells its operations, it could mark the second step in a series of such pullouts by the company that has been taking place across Asia. McDonald’s has already sold its business in China and Hong Kong and it may happen in India as well if the situation doesn’t improve for the company.

What do you say McDonald lovers? Do you want McDonald’s continue its journey in India? Share your views with us in the comments section below.