Ghost town by dusk: CP falls silent as shutters come down

Most businesses complied.

Popular eateries such as Embassy Restaurant, Immigrant Cafe, Haldiram’s and KFC shut well before sunset. Retail outlets, including Fabindia, Raymond and Nike also pulled down their shutters by 6.30 pm.

But not all.

Mayank Sharma, who has run a mobile accessories shop at Regal Building on Sansad Marg for 25 years, chose to keep his store open.

“My shop closes at 10 pm every day. I saw the NDTA notice, but it only advises us to shut by 6.30 pm,” he said, pointing to the word “advise” on the circular displayed on his phone. “I will stick to my usual timings.”

Saravana Bhavan, a popular South Indian restaurant, too, continued serving customers. “We have been told to stay open unless there is any problem. There hasn’t been one so far, so we will continue,” its manager said.

Crocs’ store in B Block, Inner Circle, was one of the flagship stores that remained open even after 6.30 pm. The manager said the company’s headquarters had not issued any closure instructions.

Restaurants that remained open said business had suffered over the last few days.

Barbeque Nation, which earlier received around 300-350 customers daily, now sees barely 50, its management said.

Sandos reported a similar decline. “Since the road closure after the violence on Monday, and the increase in the number of barricades, there has been a drastic decrease in footfall,” said the manager of Sandos.

By 8.15 pm, the well-lit Connaught Place had given way to darkness. The only movement came from buses carrying RAF personnel, their headlights briefly lighting up the streets.