NEW DELHI: Upon hearing that I was covering the Defence Colony market sealing drive, a local shopkeeper approached me, “Mark my words” he half-jokingly assured, “This article of yours won’t be published. It will be written but it won’t be published.” When I inquired as to why he felt this way, he immediately became visibly agitated, “These press-walas have come to interview us five or six times. But everytime on the television these interviews will be half-censored. Nobody has bothered to tell the complete story, in fact I have lost faith in the free pen.”

When I furthered inquired as to why he felt this was the case, his reply came as blunt as his tone, “It’s all political pressure. I understand that; the police, the MCD, the DDA and even the press, they are all following orders which are coming right from the top. I have even received phone calls from the journalists who interviewed me, they’ve apologised on behalf of their editors, saying their articles have been halted by a single phone call. You see, first the sealing drive, then the encroachment drive, and now the demolition drive, it’s not at all about sealing! In fact-”

Before he could regale me with his tantalizing perspective, his associate burst onto the scene, summoning him promptly to his shop where a cadre of policemen had arrived. He cursed under his breath, took a final sip of his chai and rushed to supervise the commotion.

May 22nd will mark the five month anniversary of Defence Colony market sealing by the Municipal Corporation of Delhi (MCD). The initial sealing drive began on December 22nd of 2017, where Defence Colony Market was the first to be targeted by the authorities for sealing. This was followed by a second sealing drive on January 17th. Subsequently, several other Delhi markets, including Khan Market, Lajpat Nagar, Green Park, Kailash Market, Chandni Chowk, Chowri Bazar, Sardar Bazar, and Tilak Nagar amongst many others were promptly sealed by the MCD under direction of the Supreme Court appointed Monitoring Committee.

Despite three strikes by the Confederation of All India Traders (CAIT), including one accompanied by a mega-rally in Delhi’s Ramlila grounds on March 28th, as well as a resolution by AAP convener and Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal to go on hunger strike until a solution is reached, the sealing and encroachment drives see no sign of abating, with the Supreme Court ordering an expedition of the sealing on April 29th, 2018.

Despite the work of the authorities, several markets, including South Delhi’s Khan Market, South Extension and Greater Kailash, have largely resumed operations, with only Defence Colony market in South Delhi remaining extensively sealed since December 22nd with no apparent end in sight.

“The reason for that is, we have all our paperwork in order, we have paid all our legal dues to the government over several years and were operating our shops in full respect of the law” Alleged the prior shopkeeper, who had returned from his interaction with the police seeming more distressed than before. “By keeping Defence Colony sealed, the authorities are sending a message to all the other markets which are operating illegally, and which remain open. If Defence Colony is not safe, nobody is. Now nothing is certain, they are threatening to bring bulldozers in tomorrow, and they’ve been threatening that for a while. I live in perpetual stress of tomorrow, how can I even pay my employees in this condition?”

A lack of clarity regarding the truth of the matter is evidently absent. A nearby stall vendor explained to me that the sealing had only been undertaken on shops which had partially paid the government their taxes, and kiosk vendors such as him had been left relatively unaffected. Tax in this regard possibly refers to a ‘conversion charge’, demanded by the authorities to allow for the upper floors of shop complexes to be used for commercial purposes. The MCD concurrently maintains these fees are partially or wholly outstanding from Defence Colony traders.

This view is opposed by the shopkeepers, who cite that the demands for conversion charges are wholly unjustified, as the Market grounds are not, and have never been a residential or mixed-use area. In fact, the land upon which the shops have been built were auctioned off in 1957 at purely commercial rates, before the inception of the MCD itself.

Unsurprisingly, the issue of sealing has been tinged with political intrigue of late. The Delhi-ruling AAP leaders have levelled accusations of corruption and bullying against the largely BJP dominated MCD. On January 17, AAP spokesperson Dilip Pandey alleged that the MCD had been running a racket by turning a blind eye to illegal constructions and establishments over a decade in lieu of receiving bribes, and subsequently intimidating shopkeepers further with conversion charges. The allegations continue to state that the South Delhi Municipal Corporation (SDMC) has been transferring the money from the collection of conversion and parking charges into a general account, where the funds are unaccounted for.

These accusations have been refuted by the SDMC, with Mayor Kamaljeet Sehrawat denying the transfer of any funds from the legitimate escrow account: these funds, she claims have been used only for beautification of zones as well as the building of multi-level parking and other public facilities in commercial areas, in accordance with the Delhi Development Association (DDA) ‘Master Plan 2021’.

The tense political climate between the ruling AAP and the BJP controlled MCD has undoubtedly influenced the views of Defence Colony shopkeepers, who, due to lack of clarity on the government’s part can only contemplate as to why their market continues to be sealed whilst others remain undisturbed. In regards the Master Plan 2021 proposed parking facilities, for example, shopkeeper Mehra Gupta was of the view that, “The MCD proposed a parking lot be built here, but the shopkeepers opposed that, perhaps that is why Defence Colony is being targeted vindictively.”

Though shopkeepers Inderjit Singh and Balbir Singh share a different view, they too cannot help but notice what appears to be a more spiteful approach by the authorities regarding Defence Colony, “I can only contemplate as to why Defence Colony has been treated especially badly.” Balbir Singh shared, “Maybe one of the reasons is that here was the first place to be sealed, and when the authorities came in December, there may have been some kind of provocation to which they took offence. This might have been the reason as to why the seal has been implemented harsher in Defence Colony.”

“Approximately 50 first floors, 50 second floors and 35 basements have been sealed. No other market has been sealed to such an extent” Inderjit Singh added, “So it seems somewhere or the other within the government there is a partiality.”

For Defence Colony traders, that partiality is evident to see, “More recent shops, such as those on Bhishma Pitamah Marg have opened up after 2006. According to the monitoring committee, these shops in residential areas are legal. Yet, it is our shops, that have been operating in the commercial area for seventy years which have been deemed illegal. It’s a farce.” Inderjit Singh explained.

Especially troubling for the shopkeepers has been the media reporting of the drive, which gives credence to their contemplations. “To some extent there is a media bias. There are some channels who were reporting, and others which did not cover this story at all” Inderjit Singh stated.

Balbir Singh expounded further, “There has been no news on Aaj Tak, no news on NDTV, no coverage on any of the English Channels; mind you it’s not a small issue. It’s a matter of civil liberties which affects Delhi, a city of 22 million people.”

“No one is listening to us, the news has not reported any developments” Gupta said, “We have a good relationship with the NDTV folks, they would always come here for interviews, and only here for shopping. But even they did not cover this story.”

As unemployment grips a once bustling commercial hub, shopkeepers are forced to confront their worst fears about the future, “Dukhandar sabh shant ho gaye (Shopkeepers have become silent), what we could have done we have done. There is no hope.” Gupta confided, “Business is slowly crippling, everything is finishing here. Those who are unemployed in Defence Colony are now seeking employment in Khan market.”

Gupta’s views behind the government’s motivations are not unsimilar to those maintained by AAP, who claim that the BJP run municipal institutions are bullying smaller shops to make way for bigger corporations. “This is all being done to prepare for Walmart, and to send us packing” Alleged Gupta, “Businesses will close, and Walmart will come. This is the story.”

Whilst the future seems worrying, the present situation is even more bleak, “There are at least 10 to 20 employees attached to every shop; and it’s their livelihood which is lost. The government on one hand complains that we are not able to generate enough employment, on the other hand they are creating unemployment. I estimate that in our market alone, five to ten thousand people have directly become unemployed. Each person has a family of four to five to support. If you come in the morning you will see at least a hundred people sitting outside Moets who are now unemployed” One shopkeeper lamented.

“They need to come up with a solution for our immediate relief. They should de-seal the shops, and then see if there is any deviation in the sanctioned plan, then they should give a time limit to demolish the offending areas. Otherwise, the economy is hurt and the government is also losing revenue. It should be innocent until proven guilty, not guilty until proven innocent.” Inderjit Singh added.

“If anyone has done encroachment, that is wrong. If someone has constructed one floor extra, then you should stop activity on that floor. These things we understand.” Explained Balbir Singh, “But to seal the entire property, that is very wrong. See, we shopkeepers are not criminals. We are not running away anywhere. They (MCD) should not seal and stop all commercial activities. They should sit down, and negotiate. I think most shopkeepers will be willing to negotiate.”

Despite a willingness to compromise, shopkeepers still do not see a solution in sight, especially because there has not been clarity as to what their offending crime has been. Some shopkeepers allege that authorities have even refused to acknowledge their legal documentations; which may be due to a lack of common law between the several municipal institutions of Delhi, which the Monitoring Committee has overlooked, “Delhi is not like other cities. Only if they (Monitoring Committee) study all corresponding documents and laws, and take the opinion of previous officers, will they be able to find a solution” Inderjit Singh opinionated.

Regardless of what the truth behind this seemingly political deadlock might be, the sealing drive of 2017-2018 has proven a far cry from a similar drive which was undertaken by the then ruling Congress government in 2006-2007, where Delhi’s government was not split between two parties as vehemently, “Delhi does not have a good reputation with the central government since Delhi is controlled by an opposition party. Perhaps there is some conflict regarding this, which is why there has not been a solution, otherwise a solution is not difficult, such as was done by the Congress government in 2006” Balbir Singh recalled.

For others, however, political affiliations are meaningless, and the current drive is just one in a long list of exploitative moves by the authorities, “We already paid to resolve the issue of sealing in 2007, how has that benefitted us?” Gupta said, “The ones who didn't give are fools, but so are the ones who did. Now we have all been sealed.”

(The indefinite closure of prominent businesses has led to unemployment and outrage in Defence Colony Market. Credit: Zuber Singh)

(The sealing drive, initiated in late December of 2017, has forced several businesses, such as the popular stationery shop Bansal’s, to operate on curb-side kiosks. Credit: Zuber Singh)

( The Delhi-wide sealing drive has been accompanied by an encroachment drive, which has seen the demolition of offending obstructions on public land, especially staircases. Credit: Zuber Singh)

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