Ggn meat shops open after cops give assurance
Meat shops in Gurgaon, which were forcibly closed for two days, reopened on Thursday following assurances by the police. Some of the shops, however, were kept closed voluntarily by the owners for the Hindu festival Navratra.
Protesters had forced shut down more than 300 shops on both sides of Delhi-Gurgaon expressway on Tuesday and Wednesday. A KFC outlet in Sector 14 was also forcibly closed by the group, which claimed to be members of the Shiv Sena. The KFC outlet reopened on Wednesday afternoon under police protection.
On Thursday morning, the meat shops in Sadar Bazaar and in other parts of the city were opened.
“We lodged a complaint with the police. There was fear among the meat sellers,” Mohammad Tahir, president of the Jama Masjid market committee in Sadar Bazaar, told Hindustan Times. “Police have told us to immediately call them in case of any trouble,” he said.
Akhtar Qureshi, a meat seller in the market, said the protesters had forced them to sign a paper stating that they would not open shops during Navratra and on every Tuesday. “We respect religious sentiments but our shops are not causing any disturbance to the religious festival,” he said.
Of the 15 shops in Jama Masjid market, only five were closed on Thursday as the owners were not clear about the situation.
Traders in Jacobpura kept their shops closed voluntarily as most of them are Hindus and they don’t sell meat during Navratri. Of the 13 shops in the area only two are owned by Muslims. Vinod Kumar, a shopkeeper, said shops are closed during Navratra every year.
Police are patrolling the area. “We have received the complaint from the meat sellers. We have assured them of security,” Vikram Nehra, SHO of the City police station, said.
He said the alleged Shiv Sena members were called and warned of action if they resorted to such activities.
Sandeep Khirwar, Gurgaon police commissioner, said the police have strict instructions not to tolerate such nuisance and act against those disturbing peace.
Ritu Raj, Gurgaon spokesperson of Shiv Sena, told HT on Thursday that they never forced closure of meat shops. “We only urged to close shops due to religious sentiments. No one was forced to down shutters” he said.
The protesters had targeted shops in Sadar Bazar, Sectors 7, 9, 14, and Palam Vihar near the old Gurgaon road on Tuesday. On Wednesday morning, they turned on the shops on the other side of the Delhi-Gurgaon expressway in DLF, Sushant Lok, Sohna Road and Badshahpur areas.