New Delhi: Leader of Opposition (LoP) in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi asked traders on Monday to tell Narendra Modi to sack Chief Election Commissioner (CEC) Gyanesh Kumar, and said that the protests will then stop in 30 seconds.
Gandhi’s remarks on X came days after the Chamber of Trade and Industry (CTI) urged him to postpone the INDIA bloc's November 1 rally against vote theft at Delhi's Ramlila Maidan until after November 10. The trade body warned that if held, the rally would disrupt business worth Rs 10,000 crore during the peak Diwali shopping season.
In the post, while sharing a poster calling for a protest at Ramlila Maidan, Gandhi responded to growing concerns raised by commercial bodies regarding security barricading and public transit restrictions affecting local markets during ongoing political demonstrations.
“With a stolen vote nothing is safe - your shop, your savings, your children’s future. Tell Modi to sack accused no. 4, Gyanesh Kumar and the protests will stop in 30 seconds,” the Congress leader wrote on X.
To every trader in Delhi: We love you and hear you.The Govt shut the metro, sealed our roads and locked down our capital.With a stolen vote nothing is safe - your shop, your savings, your children’s future.Tell Modi to sack accused no. 4, Gyanesh Kumar and the protests will stop in 30 seconds.दिल्ली के हर व्यापारी से: हम आपसे प्यार करते हैं, आपकी बात सुन रहे हैं।मेट्रो सरकार ने बंद की, सड़कें सरकार ने सील की, राजधानी पर ताला सरकार ने लगाया।जब वोट ही चोरी हो जाए, तो कुछ भी सुरक्षित नहीं - न आपकी दुकान, न आपकी बचत, न आपके बच्चों का भविष्य।मोदी जी से कहिए - आरोपी नंबर 4, ज्ञानेश कुमार को हटाएं, 30 सेकंड में आंदोलन रुक जाएगा।
— Rahul Gandhi (@RahulGandhi) October 26, 2026
The request of the traders' body
In a letter to Gandhi, CTI chairman Brijesh Goyal said the rally could affect wholesale and retail markets around Ramlila Maidan at a time when traders expect heavy customer footfall ahead of Dhanteras and Diwali.
Goyal said Delhi records business worth around Rs 25,000 crore across sectors such as gold and silver, electronics, clothing, utensils, dry fruits, sweets, automobiles, property and gift items around Dhanteras, which falls on November 6 this year. Diwali will be celebrated on November 8, followed by Bhai Dooj on November 10.
The traders' body said markets generally see increased activity about a week before the festivals, making the timing of the rally a matter of concern for traders.
The traders' body requested the leader of the Congress party, a core constituent of the opposition INDIA bloc, to consider holding the rally after November 10, saying the postponement would help protect business activity during one of the busiest periods of the year.
While Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge previously indicated that party leadership is deliberating on the traders' appeal to find an amenable solution, Gandhi’s message frames the ongoing agitation against alleged election irregularities and the Election Commission as an essential constitutional fight necessary to safeguard long-term economic stability.
The protest against alleged SIR irregularities
The opposition rally is aimed at ramping up pressure on the government over the 'vote chori' issue and for the Chief Election Commissioner's resignation over the alleged irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls.
On October 12, protests over the 'vote theft' charge reached the Supreme Court's doorstep, with opposition leaders, activists and civil society members participating in a 'March for Democracy' along a heavily barricaded route in Delhi and filing a joint petition against the SIR.
Gandhi hosted INDIA bloc leaders for tea at his home on October 13. After the meeting, the opposition bloc vowed to continue resisting and to take the fight to its logical conclusion.
(With inputs from PTI & ANI)
