D-Street holiday for Mumbai polls draws flak

NAGPUR: The shutting down of stock markets due to civic elections in Mumbai, Nagpur and some other cities in Maharashtra drew flak from a select group of investors and market players, while there were some who supported the move.

In a post on X, Nithin Kamath, CEO, Zerodha, one of the leading stock broking firms in India, expressed his disappointment over keeping the bourses closed. Kamath said it reflected poor planning and lack of understanding of international investors who also keep a tab on the Indian market. The move also reflects a serious lack of appreciation for second-order effect.




Kamath's views were endorsed by some stock traders in the city. Anuj Badjate of Badjate Stock Broking said Mumbai did not represent the entire country. When trading online was the norm, dealings in stocks were not limited to Mumbai. As markets across the country were closed due to polls in Mumbai, investors elsewhere in the country were not able to buy or sell stocks during the day even if they wanted to, Badjate told TOI.

However, there were some who supported the move to keep the markets closed. Samir Arora, founder & group CIO, Helios Capital, a Singapore-based investment management firm with a major focus on India, countered Kamath. Taking a cue from the announcement that this year the Budget will be presented on a Sunday (Feb 1) and the markets will be open that day, Arora said on X, "If our exchange has international linkages is it not unfair to foreign investors to have (the) market open on (a) Sunday."

The decision to shut the market for Mumbai municipal elections also got support from Samir Bakre, state BJP spokesperson and a chartered accountant.