The Chief Justice of India, Surya Kant, on Tuesday, while hearing a batch of petitions against the ongoing protests in the national capital, especially
against the anti-SIR stir, called for a balance between the right to protest and the right to trade as traders continue to lose crores amid the festive season. During the hearing and concerns raised by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta over recent protests in the national capital that have caused loss of hundreds of crores to businesses, the Supreme Court said, "You can't occupy protest site for all times; there are others who would also like to vent their grievances." The top court heard pleas of traders against protests, issues of mass detention, police brutalities, closure of Metro stations, internet shutdown. The Supreme Court asked traders' bodies to make organisers of anti-CEC protest parties to their plea alleging loss of business. As the arguments continued, traders' counsel told the top court, "50 lakh people live in areas near protest site; all shops remain closed, there's nobody in CP today: Counsel for traders to SC." Reacting to this, the Supreme Court said, "No court can determine issues unless traders' bodies make all protesting organisations parties."
