The Supreme Court on Friday declined to pass an immediate order on a plea by Delhi traders’ associations expressing apprehension of business losses due to the proposed protest by the Cockroach Janta Party (CJP) at Central Park and the consequent New Delhi Municipal Council (NDMC) order to shut the park.
Chief Justice of India Surya Kant said the court would exercise its powers if there was any unlawful disruption of business due to the protest.
The plea, filed by the Delhi Kirana Committee and the Delhi Iron and Hardware Merchant Association, was mentioned before the CJI-led bench on Friday morning. The petitioners expressed concern over the proposed protest at Central Park, claiming it could disrupt trade worth Rs 200 crore a day at the Connaught Place market.
While the CJI said the court would hear the plea in the last week of October, he observed that disruption of trade could affect the livelihoods of numerous families.
“We hope better sense will prevail on everyone… We know that all small shopkeepers, they earn their livelihood during these days. We know the hardship and difficulty entire families will face,” CJI Surya Kant said.
The petitioners pointed out that the closure of Central Park could also affect hawkers and small traders, who risk losing business amid the disruption.
“Someone wants to protest, someone wants to sell moongfali (peanuts), someone wants law and order, all are related,” Justice Joymalya Bagchi observed, referring to other petitions before the court concerning the protest.
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The traders’ associations have flagged potential business losses due to protests in central Delhi during the festive and wedding season.
The petition seeks directions to ensure that protests do not disrupt business and the functioning of markets.
It also pegged the losses suffered by traders due to protests since October 10 at a staggering Rs 2,000 crore.
The New Delhi Traders Association has claimed that traders in Connaught Place alone suffered losses of Rs 150 crore to Rs 200 crore due to the protest on October 10.
Protest at Connaught Place on Thursday
Photo Credit: ANI
The petitioners have placed three key demands before the court:
1: Uninterrupted access to markets: Ensure that protests, sit-ins (dharnas), processions and road blockades do not disrupt movement in Delhi’s major markets or on roads leading to them between October 2026 and January 2027.
2: Designated protest sites: Identify and officially notify suitable locations for protests away from commercial areas and the city centre.
3: Standard operating procedure: Formulate an SOP for managing protests in Delhi that balances the right to protest with the rights and interests of businesses, livelihoods and public transport.
Reacting to the traders concerns of loss of business, CJP founder Abhijeet Dipke blamed the government.
“Businesses do not suffer because of peaceful protests. They suffer when the govt decides to shut down an entire city, suspend internet services and restrict the movement of its own citizens and turn the city into a war-zone,” he posted on X.