The face-off between a section of merchants and the police at S.M. Street in Kozhikode on Monday morning, in full view of television cameras, reflected the concerns of traders across the State whose livelihood is hit by the ongoing pandemic-induced restrictions.
The Kerala Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samithi (KVVES) has now said that its members would open shops from Thursday in line with the protocol across the State. Samithi leaders T. Nazirudeen and Raju Apsara said that even after submitting various representations to the State government, the authorities were not allowing them to run their business. They claimed that traders had not been able to run shops for the past two months and many were on the brink of suicide.
Indications of a showdown, however, were evident by Sunday evening. KVVES functionaries had said that traders, whose livelihood was at stake, should not be seen as “violators of law” if they were forced to open their shops. Mr. Raju Apsara had said that the current method of daily test positivity rate-based restrictions was unscientific. “People will come out in large numbers and the infection will spread if shops are closed for more number of days and then opened for a few days. If traders take to the streets, our organisation may not be able to control them,” he had said.
The Kozhikode city police, meanwhile, had warned traders against calling upon others to open shops. It was pointed out that the Kozhikode Corporation was in ‘C’ category where the TPR for COVID-19 is between 10% and 15%. Merchants were also told that their trade licences would be cancelled.
But, as expected, 25 members of the youth wing of the KVVES, supported by Youth Congress activists, tried to open shops at S.M. Street, a major commercial spot in the city, on Monday morning amid a steady drizzle. When the police promptly took them into custody, they were seen shouting slogans against restrictions and seeking permission to run their business. “When there is no bar on Bevco outlets selling liquor, why are we being stopped,” they wondered. The Town Police said that cases have been registered against 25 people and 18 had been served notice.
Published - July 12, 2021 08:18 pm IST
