No free burgers? Lahore police detain 19 restaurant employees

• Workers of Johnny and Jugnu were held for seven hours.
• "This is not the first time something like this has happened," says outlet.
• Restaurant staff says mostly young people were arrested.

LAHORE: Nineteen employees of a restaurant were sent behind bars after a group of police officers in the city flipped out when the takeaway joint refused to hand over free burgers.

Workers at the trendy chain Johnny and Jugnu in the eastern city of Lahore were rounded up and held for seven hours overnight on Saturday, leaving behind unattended kitchens and hungry customers.

"This is not the first time something like this has happened with our kitchen teams at our restaurant, but we want to make sure this is the last," the fast food chain said in a statement published on social media.

The beef started when staff at the restaurant refused a "request from a very high profile special guest".

Restaurant staff told AFP that most of those arrested were young people, including many university students.

Following an outcry among fans, nine police officers involved were suspended yesterday, senior provincial police official Inam Ghani said on Twitter.

"No one is allowed to take the law into his own hands," Ghani said.

Pakistan's police officers are infamous for corruption and for demanding kickbacks from local businesses.

Prime Minister Imran Khan has called for a reform of Punjab's police force, saying "cronies" had been appointed by politicians to control police stations.