Overview
- Repeated protests and large police deployments in central Delhi have left Connaught Place and nearby markets with thin customer traffic even while shops stayed open.
- Shopkeepers reported sharp revenue drops, with some outlets seeing weekend sales fall to roughly 10% of normal levels and overall footfall reduced to a fraction of usual numbers.
- Multiple traders’ bodies have written to central authorities and filed petitions in the Supreme Court asking that demonstrations be relocated from commercial hubs and that relief be provided.
- Traders say road closures, barricades and the parking of police buses are blocking access to markets and that unsold festival inventory is tying up working capital needed to pay rent, staff and taxes.
- The Supreme Court has signalled it may consider compensation if it finds unlawful deprivation of business, and traders warn continued disruptions could trigger wider income losses for vendors, drivers and market workers.