Once a hot cake during the elections time, the poll paraphernalia in forms of party flags, banners, T-shirts, scarves, stickers, printed balloons, posters, shawls, badges, angvastram and many more have no takers this Lok Sabha polls in the country’s largest wholesale market, Sadar Bazar, in Central Delhi area. Now more than a month of announcements of the polls and with two phases of elections already conducted the traders are worried over the brisk business over the political party merchandise.

 “Manda hai ji. (low business),” said the proprietor of one of the largest traders of these item in Sadar Bazar. The market has plenty of shops selling these items of different political parties and all said that it’s a loss making venture and blamed the advent of social media platforms. “Now one person buy these items and several rotate amongst themselves just for the sake of making photos and images and post of media platforms,” said Sadar Bazar Traders Association representative Paramjit Singh Pamma.  

The traders anticipates that the business may pick when Delhi goes to polls on May 25, but they have already suffered losses as neighbouring Noida, Ghaziabad, Meerut have already voted.

On talking to the shop number 516, Zain Enterprises, the owner Fazil said, “arey abhi tak ek percent ka bhi business nahin hai” (There is not even one percent business till now).

Throwing light on current election scenario, he accounted while BJP people gives manufacturing contracts to their own people, the bank accounts of the Congress party have been frozen and the leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party are in jail which has led to the subtracting sales.