A surly-looking elderly man sat behind the counter of an empty jewellery store in Delhi’s bustling Karol Bagh on October 11, reading The Sunday Times of India.
“Restrained, detained, contained,” said the front page banner headline of the newspaper, describing the events of the previous day.
The jeweller grumbled and put it more pithily: “Such a nuisance.”
On Saturday, thousands of ordinary citizens had defied the unprecedented security cover in Central Delhi to show up to protest against the chief election commissioner who they believe is rigging voter lists in the ruling party’s favour.
To thwart the protest, the government had cancelled trains, closed down metro stations, and even shuttered markets like Karol Bagh.
The jeweller, who did want to disclose his name, said he was feeling “very frustrated” – it was the start of the festive season, and chaos on the streets was not good for business. “There has been a lot of disturbance and it is not going to be over soon,” he said.
His annoyance with the protestors aside, he was sympathetic to their cause. “There is definitely something fishy about the voting system currently,” he said.
Despite having lived and voted in Delhi all his life, he had received a notice during the Special Intensive Revision of...