Shaheen Bagh shopkeepers meet DCP to re-open shops

The anti-CAA protest at Delhi's Shaheen Bagh forced the shopkeepers from the area to keep their shops closed which has impacted their livelihood. To find a solution to this problem the shopkeepers on Saturday met DCP (south-east district) R.P. Meena, urging him to take necessary steps so that they could re-open their shops.

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The representatives of Kalindi Kunj Market Welfare Association said they are facing losses due to the closure of shops, which has affected their livelihoods. The meeting with the DCP was however not fruitful as the shopkeepers did not get any positive response. A member of the market association informed that the DCP is waiting for the orders from the Supreme court. Once the order from the apex court is received than the administration will take necessary action. The member also anguished that the shopkeepers are left with no source of income and will be soon forced to end their lives.

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The protests at Shaheen Bagh have severely impacted the livelihood of the shopkeepers. The protest has also incurred a loss amounting to crores of rupees. Some of the shopkeepers have also informed that they have started receiving loan overdue notice from the banks.

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Another member of the market association explained that they don't have any problem with the protest as the issue is between the government and the protestors. He further said the shopkeepers just want their shops to open so that they can run their business.

The Shaheen Bagh protest

Days after the Parliament passed the controversial Citizenship Amendment Act, Delhi's Shaheen Bagh became a site for protests comprising mainly women, with the regular attendance of political persons such as netas of the Congress party like Mani Shankar Aiyar, Shashi Tharoor and others.

With the road blockages on account of Shaheen Bagh becoming a daily nuisance for the residents of Delhi, the Supreme Court intervened and appointed interlocutors in an effort to move the protest to another venue more suited for such a purpose. Five days of the mediation between Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors Sadhana Ramachandran and Sanjay Hegde to persuade them on shifting the protest site did not result in any breakthrough. A delegation of Shaheen Bagh women protestors who met Ramachandran set seven conditions ranging for the demand of protection if the road is reopened to no NPR in Delhi to revocation of cases against student protestors.

On March 3, Supreme Court-appointed interlocutors issued a formal statement discussing the future course of action. Mentioning that the SC had directed them to resume the dialogue, the interlocutors stated that this was the second phase of interactions.

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