As the sealing drive resumed in the capital on Monday, agitating traders took out a protest march to the residence of Union Minister Ajay Maken.
Civic authorities in the Capital resumed the sealing drive on Monday after a two-day break, even as the central government petitioned the Supreme Court to bail out those traders who had given an undertaking to stop misuse of residential premises for commercial activities.
The Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD) started sealing operations at the upscale Greater Kailash-I in south Delhi. Since Nov 8, civic authorities have sealed over 360 commercials units, including guesthouses, restaurants and even a couple of playschools. On Nov 6, the apex court had dismissed three petitions of the MCD and central government and directed authorities to resume sealing immediately.
“Like last week, we will target some bigger establishments to clear any misconception that the drive is hurting the small traders and leaving out the influential,” said a top MCD official. In yet another attempt to help thousands of traders, the government submitted in the apex court that about 30,000 of the traders were covered by its notifications of Sept 7 and 15 permitting continuance of commercial activities along nearly 2,200 roads across the city.
It also said that after the court’s Nov 6 order on sealing, it was taking steps to close down those premises whose owners had given an undertaking to the court that they would shift.
On Sunday, the MCD clarified that the traders who had stopped commercial activities in illegal shops following the Supreme Court directive needed to file an affidavit if they wanted to avoid sealing of their premises. Traders held a protest march Monday from Rajouri Garden to Minister of State for Urban Development Ajay Maken’s official residence, but police blocked it.
“We were marching towards Maken’s residence but police blocked our way. Nearly 300 traders were also detained by police,” said Ramesh Khanna, vice president of the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT). He said the sealing drive had already forced a trader in west Delhi to commit suicide. “And if the drive continues, many such incidents will take place. We will sit on a hunger strike near Rajghat (the memorial for Mahatma Gandhi) from Wednesday,” Khanna said.
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