NEW DELHI: With barricades and security restrictions around central Delhi keeping shoppers away, Khan Market traders on Tuesday said business had fallen to just 10-20% of normal levels amid protests over the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.As the festive season gets underway, the traders appealed to the Supreme Court to shift the demonstrations from Jantar Mantar and central Delhi to the city’s borders, saying their livelihoods were being hit.Sanjeev Mehra, president of the Khan Market Traders Association, said police barricading had severely restricted access to the market, leaving shops open but largely without customers.
Khan Market traders flag losses
“For the past few days, business has been taking a hit because of these protests. The police have set up a perimeter to stop the protestors, which starts 1 Km before our market. Due to this, our customers are having a lot of trouble getting around. The market is open, but there are no customers and the business is completely at a standstill. We are only able to do about 10% to 20% of our business,” Mehra said while speaking to ANI.He said the protests had also affected footfall during the festive season, when traders generally expect more customers.“The festival started yesterday, but you would not see any customers in the market because they are scared. They have this fear in their minds about whether they will get a way through; the protesters might turn violent,” he said.
Traders back right to protest, oppose disruption to business
Mehra said traders did not oppose peaceful demonstrations but wanted their right to conduct business and earn a livelihood to be respected.“We have no problem with people protesting, but we have the right to do our business and earn our livelihood, just like they have the right to protest.”Questioning the opposition’s claims about irregularities in the SIR exercise, he asked why leaders had not presented evidence when they approached the President.“When you went to the President, why didn’t you take any evidence with you? It is because you want to prolong this protest and plant a narrative in people’s minds. They don’t have any evidence to say there’s a massive scam in the SIR.”Mehra also referred to voters whose names may be missing from electoral rolls and said the government continues to provide opportunities to address discrepancies.“I am a citizen too, and there are citizens living around our homes who are not on the voter list and the government keeps giving them chances to come in and submit a new form if there’s any mismatch or something left unresolved,” he added.Calling the opposition’s claims about large-scale deletions false, Mehra said, “The political parties are claiming around 13 crore votes are deleted; it is a lie, which is hurting our business.”
Appeal to Supreme Court
Mehra urged the apex court to intervene and ensure that demonstrations did not disrupt commercial activity in central Delhi.“I request the Supreme Court to step in and move the protest site from here and take it to Delhi border. It should be ensured that there are no protests at Jantar Mantar or in New Delhi area from now on,” he said.Brijgopal Khosla, senior vice-president of the Khan Market Traders Association, also said repeated demonstrations and blocked routes were discouraging customers from visiting the market.“Due to repeated protests every day, the market routes get blocked and no customers are willing to come. There is no business. The whole reason for these protests is to cause disturbance. We all see videos of these protests–police are being beaten, there is hooliganism,” Khosla said.“We request the Supreme Court to move the protest sites to Delhi border. Our movement should not be curtailed and business should not suffer. If someone wants to protest, please follow a proper approach; do it peacefully,” he added.
INDIA bloc moves Supreme Court after ‘March for Democracy’
The traders’ appeal comes amid an escalating political confrontation over the SIR exercise. On Monday, INDIA bloc leaders marched through central Delhi towards the Supreme Court under the banner ‘March for Democracy’ and filed a petition challenging the ongoing revision exercise.The move triggered sharp criticism from BJP leaders and their allies, who accused the opposition of creating disorder and disrupting public life in the national capital.The petition, filed under Article 32 of the Constitution, seeks a suspension of the ongoing SIR exercise across the country until the issues raised are adjudicated. It also seeks the formation of an independent committee headed by a retired Supreme Court judge to examine the implementation of the revision exercise and review the technical systems governing electoral rolls and Electronic Voting Machines (EVMs).(With ANI inputs)
