Delhi protests over the Special Intensive Revision of electoral rolls and demands concerning the Election Commission have drawn criticism from trader associations, which say demonstrations and road blockades are disrupting market access and threatening business during the Dussehra-Diwali and wedding season.
Representatives of trade bodies said traders typically stock goods and, in many cases, take loans before the festive period, relying on higher sales to meet annual expenses. They alleged that disruptions were keeping customers away, restricting deliveries and discouraging buyers from visiting major markets in the national capital.
Ajay Gupta, a member of the National Traders Welfare Board, urged Congress leader Rahul Gandhi to reconsider the ongoing agitation. “I humbly request the Leader of the Opposition, Shri Rahul Gandhi ji, to reconsider the agitation currently underway, as it is not benefiting anyone; instead, it is creating an atmosphere of anarchy,” Gupta said.
Gupta said traders were not opposed to protests as such, but asked that demonstrations should not obstruct roads or interfere with commercial activity. “We are not opposed to the act of protesting itself … but it should be done in a manner that causes no harm to the common man and creates no obstacles for us traders in running our businesses,” he said.
The impact claimed by the traders extends beyond Delhi’s local retail markets. Ghanshyam Das Goyal of the Dal and Besan Millers Association said traders from areas around Delhi usually travel to the capital to purchase stock for Diwali. According to Goyal, disruptions had discouraged these buyers from making the trip.
Prakash Purgal of the Bangalore Wholesale Cloth Merchant Association also urged the Congress leader to pursue dialogue rather than road blockades. Purgal said Dussehra, Diwali and the wedding season were important periods for small businesses that had begun to see a recovery after a prolonged period of difficulty. He warned that continued closures could put smaller traders under pressure and, in some cases, force shops to shut.
“Please consider this carefully: whatever issues need to be discussed should be addressed through dialogue, rather than by blocking roads and spoiling the festive spirit of Dussehra and Diwali,” Purgal said.
Several trade bodies from Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Rajasthan, Karnataka and Kerala submitted representations on October 12 and 13, seeking measures to ensure that protests do not obstruct commercial activity during the festive season. The representations reflect the dependence of wholesale and retail networks on road access to Delhi’s markets, although the supplied report does not provide an independent estimate of revenue losses or the number of businesses affected.
The traders’ appeal comes as the INDIA bloc intensifies its campaign against the functioning of the Election Commission under Chief Election Commissioner Gyanesh Kumar. The Opposition has demanded Kumar’s resignation, the scrapping of the SIR exercise and restoration of voter names it alleges were deleted during the revision process.
The bloc has also called for a return to ballot papers instead of electronic voting machines, restoration of pre-SIR electoral rolls for future elections and an effective appeals mechanism for voters excluded from the rolls. It has pursued protests and legal action under its wider “Save Democracy” campaign.
The trade bodies’ immediate request is that the protests continue without road blockades or other interruptions to commercial movement during the festive and wedding season.
