Click to play videoMumbai: Roses normally fly off the shelf every Valentine's Day at Dadar's famous flower market, but this year, many of the red beauties may find no takers.
Alarmed by the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena's agitation and violence, north Indian retailers are now wary of stepping into this wholesale market, dominated by Maharashtrians.
A flower wholesaler, Pradeep Dongre says, "People from all communities come here to buy flowers, but customers are scared now. North Indians now think twice before coming here to Dadar."
Business is down in the dumps.
Another flower wholesaler, Rohidas Batankar says, "Comparing to every year for Valentine's Day, this year the business is only 25 per cent."
The wholesalers say quite a few of the retailers from north India have gone underground, resulting in a pile up of roses and a sharp drop in prices compared to previous years.
Dongre says, "Every year a bundle of roses go for about Rs 40 to Rs 50. But this year, since customers are scared, the prices have fallen to about Rs 30. Today, actually it is Rs 10 a bundle."
The Maharashtrians at the Dadar flower market say they have nothing against the north Indians and they just want to get on with their lives. They want to clear huge stocks of unsold flowers, which have become a surprise casualty of the war of words unleashed by Raj Thackeray's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena.
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