Festive Season Clash: Traders Object to Delhi Rally

New Delhi, October 25: Rahul Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, has invited students, youth, farmers and labourers to attend the Congress rally planned for November 1 at Ramlila Maidan in Delhi. The rally has become a flashpoint as traders and 1984 riot victims voice strong objections.

In a message posted on X on Sunday morning, Gandhi said votes were being stolen and that this would not be accepted quietly. He pointed to names removed from voter lists, rules that had been broken, and police lathi charges against people who raised questions. He declared that the country would now respond.

Gandhi outlined the November 1 event as a Jan March and Maha Rally under the slogan Vote Bachao, Desh Bachao. He urged people from many walks of life, including students, farmers, workers, women, young people and traders, to come to the capital and stand up for democracy, saying both the vote and the struggle belonged to them.

In the same post, he mocked the BJP and its allies for promoting the rally so enthusiastically, saying he was grateful and hoped they would maintain that energy for another seven days.

Delhi's traders have asked Gandhi to call off or postpone the rally, citing the festive season. They say Dhanteras and Diwali purchases begin in the first week of November, when roughly Rs 25,000 crore in business is generated. Should the rally proceed and police shut roads, they estimate losses of about Rs 10,000 crore for Delhi's trade.

Victims of the 1984 anti-Sikh riots have also announced their opposition. Their families say the date is deeply sensitive, as Sikh community members were targeted in Delhi and several other places on November 1, 1984. Holding a political rally on this date, they argue, amounts to reopening old wounds.