Thaindian News

New Delhi, March 7 (IANS) Four major retail chains and other shops downed shutters at popular malls in south Delhi Monday to protest against the 10 percent excise duty proposed on branded apparel.

“We protest on behalf of our customers, suppliers and employees. We demand that the government rolls back the 10 percent excise on garments and made-up’s in full support of Clothing Manufacturers’ Association of India (CMAI) and Retailers Association of India (RAI),” read a common poster pasted at the shuttered outlets

Finance Minister Pranab Mukherjee proposed the tax while presenting his budget for fiscal in parliament Feb 28.

Retailers argued that the hike has not gone down too well with customers and that they are on strike because they want government to reconsider its decision.

The strike notwithstanding, the high-end DLF Emporio Mall in Vasant Kunj got a fair share of its niche customers in international luxury stores like Jimmy Choo, Giorgio Armani, Versace and Zegna, among others.

A noteworthy fact was that most Indian designers like Meera-Muzaffar Ali, Shantana & Nikhil, Tarun Tahiliani, Raghavendra Rathore and Ravi Bajaj, on the second floor of the plush mall, had shut shop.

However, an official from the mall, pointed out that some of the shops could have been closed as Monday is usually their weekly off.

“We don’t interfere with individual shop owner’s decisions. Many shops are usually shut on Monday, so it is hard to tell which one is shut due to the strike. We would have worried if it was a Tuesday or Wednesday or any other day of the week,” an official of the DLF Emporio Mall told IANS.

Though there weren’t too many customers at the mall, they were surely seen sipping a cup of coffee in the sophisticated cafetaria on the ground floor.

At the DLF Promenade Mall next door, shop owners were more forthright about aligning with the protest. While some had downed shutters, others had dimmed the lights with two or three workers sitting inside.

“We are shut due to the strike,” said the manager of apparel store BIBA, while the manager at the Satya Paul store was preparing to shut work at 4.30 p.m.

“All Genesis Colors’ brands are shut due to the strike today,” said the manager at the Satya Paul store.

The Marks & Spencer store had its shutter half down, while other international brands like Mango, Esprit, La Senza and Promod weren’t open at all. However, there was no indication of whether it was due to the strike or because Monday is their weekly off.

At the recently developed Ambience Mall, four major retail chains - Shopper’s Stop, Lifestyle, Pantaloons and Westside were shut, and they flaunted the protest poster.

The Home Centre wing of Lifestyle was open, while lights were dimmed at high-end store The Collective, and the shutters were down at Tommy Hilfiger.

Some shoppers, who weren’t aware of the strike, were disappointed, but they either preferred to look around in the stores that were open or chose to pamper themselves with high tea.

“Ab aa hi gaye hain toh ghoom hi lein (Now that we have come, why not roam around for a bit),” said a middle-aged woman, accompanied by her friend.

The strike notwithstanding, a lot of youngsters walking hand-in-hand dominated the scene at the DLF Promenade Mall and the Ambience Mall.