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Correspondent | Quaid Najmi

30 March 2026 at 2:46:20 pm

WR serves closure orders to iconic Wheeler book stalls

Mumbai: In a move that has sparked both commercial and cultural concerns, the Western Railway (WR) has ordered at least 55 iconic AH Wheeler (AHW) stalls across its Mumbai Central Division to shut shop from March 31 and vacate their premises within 72 hours, sources said. The directive follows the expiry of the five-year contract granted to these stalls from April 1, 2021. A notification issued on Saturday by Assistant Commercial Manager Yajush Acharya directed concerned station...

WR serves closure orders to iconic Wheeler book stalls

Mumbai: In a move that has sparked both commercial and cultural concerns, the Western Railway (WR) has ordered at least 55 iconic AH Wheeler (AHW) stalls across its Mumbai Central Division to shut shop from March 31 and vacate their premises within 72 hours, sources said. The directive follows the expiry of the five-year contract granted to these stalls from April 1, 2021. A notification issued on Saturday by Assistant Commercial Manager Yajush Acharya directed concerned station superintendents and station managers to ensure that all 55 Multi-Purpose Stalls are cleared and handed over in ‘good condition’ by April 3. Citing norms in the order, it said contractors must remove all goods, fixtures and fittings, and settle pending dues, fines or bills before vacating. Failing compliance, WR warned of consequences including takeover of the premises, locking them up, and even disposing of any remaining goods or furniture without liability. Massive Uproar However, the move has triggered resistance from Wheeler stall operators, many of whom have been running these stalls for decades. An agent managing a prominent stall at a south Mumbai station termed the decision ‘arbitrary’ and alleged that the Railways intended to repurpose these prime locations. “We have challenged the move in the Bombay High Court and are awaiting an urgent hearing. Our plea is to grant us an extension. We suffered massive losses during the Covid-19 pandemic when suburban services were shut or restricted for months,” the agent told The Perfect Voice, requesting anonymity. ‘Knowledge Portals’ For lakhs of Mumbaikars, the bookstalls are more than just retail counters – they have been a part of the city’s daily rhythm. Generations of commuters recall grabbing a morning newspaper, a weekly magazine, or a last-minute novel to kill time during their travel. Before the era of mobile telephony, these stalls served as ‘knowledge portals’ – stocking newspapers in multiple languages, magazines, periodicals, school-college guides, books to crack competitive exams, literary or fiction novels, and even children’s books and comics like Phantom, Indrajal, Amar Chitra Katha and more. Old-timers recall how one could walk up to a Wheeler stall and ask for an obscure title, and the vendor would even go to the length of procuring it if he didn’t have it in the store. ‘If you couldn’t find a book anywhere in the city, try Wheelers - you were almost certain to get it,’ was the reputation the stalls enjoyed. A retired banker-cum-bookworm, V. Nadkarni, told The Perfect Voice that in the 1970s, he would save a few rupees every month to buy his favourite novels from Wheeler stalls. Over the years, he built up a small home library of over 500 books, which he cherished after retirement a few years ago. Wheeler cultivated on-the-move reading habit Founded in 1877 at Allahabad (now Prayagraj) station by French entrepreneur Emile Eduoard Moreau, his British partner Arthur Henry Wheeler and others, the brand grew into a nationwide institution, once operating at over 500 railway stations. During the British era, it stocked works by top leaders like Mahatma Gandhi and Jawaharlal Nehru, alongside literary giants such as Rudyard Kipling. Wheeler shops also started the ‘Indian Railway Library Series’. Post-Independence, the chain was taken over by one of its subsequent partners, TK Banerjee, in 1950, and the family continues to run the show. Though Indian Railways ended Wheeler’s monopoly in 2004 and later allowed diversification of the goods they sold in 2020, the stalls retained their distinct identity as literary-cum-cultural hubs that helped cultivate a reading habit amid the hustle and bustle of rail travel.

Clever seat selection helped BJP to secure historic win

The party won 65 seats against Congress, 37 against NCP (SP) and 29 against Shiv Sena (UBT)

Clever seat selection

Mumbai: The BJP’s strategic seat sharing with the allies has proved beneficial for the party. An analysis of the Assembly election results show that the BJP has scored over its main rival, the Congress, in a big way because of the direct fights.


The analysis shows that BJP defeated all three constituents of the Maharashtra Vikas Aghadi (MVA) – Congress, Shiv Sena (UBT) and NCP (SP) – in the direct fights. This is attributed as one of the reasons for the BJP’s historic poll success.


The BJP contested 147 out of 288 seats. In 76 constituencies, it faced Congress. BJP secured victory in 65 seats and lost only 11 seats, making it a whopping 86 per cent of the total direct fights. This was followed by an even stronger performance against NCP (SP). Of the total 39 fights with Sharad Pawar’s party, BJP captured 37 seats making it 95 per cent of the total fights with NCP (SP). BJP and Shiv Sena (UBT) were head-to-head in 32 constituencies, of which BJP emerged victorious in 29 seats, making this 91 per cent of the total direct contests.


According to a BJP strategist the party had bargained hard with its allies, Shiv Sena and NCP to get the desired constituencies in the seat sharing formula. “We had studied to potential candidates of the MVA. That helped us in choosing the seats where we can register comfortable victories,” the strategist said.


BJP spokesperson Niranjan Shetty attributed the success to all the party workers who worked hard to boost development, infrastructure in the state. He gave credit to Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis for his contribution to the party’s success.


Shetty pointed out that in 2019, Uddhav Thackeray had stalled all the “novel” and “legendary” projects that Fadnavis had started when he had taken over as CM, making it very easy for the people of Maharashtra to strike a comparison between both the leaders and the potential they had for serving the people. “Devendra Fadnavis gave up his post very easily for the larger good. There are many such examples like Venkaiah Naidu who was BJP National President and later worked as the Vice President of India because that was the need of the hour. We seldom care about our posts,” Shetty told The Perfect Voice.


Congress spokesperson Atul Londhe refused to call the election results as the people’s mandate. “This is not at all a Janata mandate. Despite Maharashtra struggling with so many basic social issues, how can BJP acquire such a huge mandate is the question. If a student copies and fails with just passing marks, it can go unnoticed, but if a student copies and bags the number one position, something is fishy. Why is the BJP scared of ballot papers?” he said.

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