350 markets shut to protest sealing in Delhi

Around 350 markets across New Delhi remained shut on Tuesday following the call for a bandh by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT) to protest ongoing sealing drives by civic bodies. While shops in Connaught Place, Defence Colony, South Extension and Karol Bagh were shut throughout the day, some markets in central Delhi were shut only for the first half. Traders in markets such as Chawdi Bazar and Karol Bagh also protested the sealing drive launched by North and South Delhi Municipal Corporations on December 22 on the direction of a Supreme Court-appointed monitoring committee.

"The traders are demanding the immediate intervention of the government as the basic fundamentals of MCD Act, 1957 have been snatched away and sealing is being conducted in a dictatorial manner under the guise of a Supreme Court order," said Praveen Khandelwal, secretary general of CAIT.

Though it was the weekly off for markets such as Greater Kailash I and II, Kailash Colony and Hauz Khas, their traders still participated in the protest."The response to the call for strike was very encouraging," says Vikram Bhasin, president of Traders Welfare Association, M Block, GK-I. "There was a complete shutdown. We suffered losses, but we had to look at the bigger picture."

"All traders are united against the unreasonable sealing drive," said Vijay Kumar, president of South Extension I Market Association.

Some high-end markets, such as Khan Market, observed a partial bandh. "What is happening is sheer high-handedness. The buck must stop somewhere. The monitoring committee cannot seal us for rules we have not flouted," says Anshu Tandon, president of Khan Market Welfare Association.

All three major political parties — the ruling AAP, Congress and the BJP (which also controls the three municipal corporations) — have extended their support to the traders. Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal said the sealing drive has hit traders hard and if it is not stopped, a number of people will lose their jobs. "The economic situation is already grim," he tweeted. "It is our duty to protect them."

Meanwhile, the North Delhi corporation sealed 47 basement and first-floor stores in Hudson lane in Civil Line and Karol Bagh on Tuesday.