Shop owners urged to defy hartal

Shop owners urged to defy hartal
File photo

Kozhikode: Kerala Vyapari Vyavasayi Ekopana Samiti, the biggest collective of merchants in the state, on Monday asked all its members to defy the dawn-to-dusk hartal called by the Youth Congress across the state. Samiti president T Nasseruddeen urged all shop owners to continue their business normally and sought police protection to the shops.

However, majority of the shop owners did not follow the directive issued by Nasseruddeen and refused to open the shops. However, shops owned by Nasseruddeen and a few office-bearers of the Samiti were opened in SM Street, Kozhikode, one of the major shopping centres in Malabar. Out of over 200 shops in this shopping zone, only seven were opened with police protection.

Other shop owners said if more people were ready to open shops, they would also join. In the first week of January, the same area witnessed tension after some right-wing organisations called a hartal and clashed with shop owners and police when the merchants defied the hartal call.

The Samiti had decided not to cooperate with any hartal after the December 14 call by the saffron brigade. They had claimed that from October onwards, four hartals were called over the Sabarimala issue and their businesses were badly hit.

The Youth Congress called for the dawn-to-dusk hartal in Kerala on Monday after two of its workers - Kripesh and Sarath Lal -were hacked to death by unidentified assailants in Kasaragod late Sunday night. The Kerala High Court has also taken a suo motu case against the Youth Congress over the impromptu hartal.

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