VOTER BANK: Sealing has emerged as one of the biggest poll planks for BJP, Cong and AAP for the upcoming LS polls ’19
With parties gearing up for the upcoming general elections, sealing has emerged as a big poll plank for the tripartite contest between Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), Congress and Aam Aadmi Party (AAP).
In the past nine months, since sealing was commenced by a Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee, around 6,500 shops across Delhi have been sealed.
Sealing is the top agenda for BJP, mindful of the support it gets from traders community, at the same time worried about losing this traditional vote bank. The issue rattled its state executive meet last week as well, where minister Vijay Goel pulled up leaders for “failing” to address the issue that has affected lakhs of big and small time traders across the national capital.
An indignant Goel was miffed at the complacence of leaders including Delhi BJP president Manoj Tiwari. He reprimanded them for just brain storming sitting in air conditioned offices. “The minister was unhappy with their indifference towards the traders. He directed them to start a movement for traders if they want to win 2019 elections,” sources said.
The MCDs have carried out the sealing drive on the orders of the monitoring committee are BJP-ruled corporations. Traders, hence, unanimously feel the mayors have failed to protect their livelihood, despite them helping them win the MCD elections. Their anger is thus casting a shadow on BJP’s winning prospects.
“Businessmen from entire Delhi massively supported BJP. But they did not support us when sealing started. All we have got is lip service,” says Jagdish Gupta, Secretary, Defence Colony Market Association. Others like Vishal Kharbanda — a businessman in Green Park market — feels cheated. “The BJP had promised us trader-friendly policies. There is not trade left, thanks to sealing,” he complains.
The politics around sealing is gaining momentum as elections draw near. Parties are exchanging barbs, accusing each other for the lockdown of business. The ruling AAP government has sided with the community, questioning BJP’s failure to bring in ordinance despite being in power at the Centre.
AAP MLA Saurabh Bhardwaj recently said, “Only BJP can put an end to this misery. The Centre has the power to bring in amendments in laws governing Delhi.”
The Congress, on the other hand, has taken potshots at both BJP and AAP, holding both the parties responsible for the ongoing sealing drive. “The AAP is passing the buck to the municipal corporations while its own government is sealing non-polluting household industries,” Maken said.
The BJP is strategising on the antagonism of their faithful electorate with plans to take on the monitoring committee for alleged irregularities that have taken place during the drive. Regular campaigns and protests against the drive with businessmen in tow are also in the pipeline. Goel even said he will take up the “injustice” done to traders in the garb of sealing with the monitoring committee.
Staring at locked premises for the past nine months, with seals mocking their existence, these businessmen are, however, apprehensive about BJP. “I am not convinced that the BJP is even bothered about our plight,” says Gupta. “There is a lot of resentment against BJP in our community for the silence it showed. It is not going to be easy for them to placate us for votes this time,” says Tarsem Garg, a businessman from Greater Kailash.
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