New Delhi: With some traders’ organisations and BJP functionaries demanding the cancellation of Congress’s ‘Vote Bachao’ rally at Ramlila Maidan on Nov 1 to “prevent business losses during the festive season and curb air pollution”, Delhi Pradesh Congress Committee (DPCC) president Devender Yadav Tuesday questioned why BJP’s proposed march in Chandni Chowk on Oct 28 should also not be scrapped by the same logic.
“Those who have held businesses and public hostage by blocking roads for weeks, sometimes in the name of students and sometimes over demands for the removal of the election commissioner, are today opposing (BJP’s) symbolic two-hour padayatra,” he said.
Chamber of Trade and Industry urged Gandhi and INDIA bloc to postpone the rally after Nov 10. MCD said it will deploy water sprinklers on roadsides and at Ramlila Maidan to control dust pollution during the Nov 1 rally. Because of the rally and due to GRAP-1 measures may lead to chaos at Delhi’s borders, rajendra Kapoor, vice-president of Delhi Vyapar Mahasangh, raised concerns that curbs on entry of vehicles.
Congress’s Rahul Gandhi urged the traders to tell PM Modi to sack CEC Gyanesh Kumar and the “protests will stop in 30 seconds”. Congress chief Mallikarjun Kharge slammed govt over “rising inflation” during the festive season, and urged people to join the rally. Yadav said, “BJP’s political duplicity is evident from its repeated criticism of the Congress rally when it is set to organise a large procession, involving thousands of workers, a day before Karwa Chauth. A portion of Ramlila Maidan will be earmarked for parking of vehicles to prevent congestion on surrounding roads, an official said, adding that non-BS-VI-compliant vehicles will be banned.
He posted on X, “To every trader in Delhi: With a stolen vote, nothing is safe — your shop, your savings, your children’s future. This will not only cause business losses and inconvenience to traders but also create difficulties for the public. Questioning how the BJP march got the green light, Yadav wondered whether organising processions in areas not designated for such events did not amount to a violation of norms. Reacting to Congress’s criticism, Delhi BJP president Harsh Malhotra accused it of hypocrisy, saying its past protests in Delhi had caused prolonged disruptions to traffic and business. The political war of words comes amid growing opposition from some traders’ organisations to the Congress rally, with many seeking its cancellation, citing its impact on business during the crucial Diwali and Dhanteras shopping period.