Evening Pulse: Stopped at the barricade, the opposition takes its fight inside the Supreme Court

Since this morning, the opposition has swapped a meeting it could not get for a case it could file. The march we flagged at dawn did set off, but it never reached the Supreme Court. By evening, though, the leaders' lawyers had done what the Chief Justice had reportedly suggested: they went to the court on its judicial side.

The march started late. INDIA bloc leaders gathered at the Constitution Club and Barakhamba Road in the afternoon, rode buses to the edge of Connaught Place and set off on foot after 4 pm, according to The Tribune. Rahul Gandhi, Priyanka Gandhi, Mallikarjun Kharge, Akhilesh Yadav and Tejashwi Yadav were among those at the front, with thousands of party workers and activists behind them, ANI reported. Police stopped the column at a barricaded Bhagwan Dass Road, a short walk from the court. Rahul Gandhi and Akhilesh Yadav climbed onto a vehicle to address the crowd. National Herald reported police pushing protesters back near Barakhamba Road towards 6 pm. No detention figures for today had been reported by evening.

The petition is the bigger news. Rahul Gandhi, Kharge, Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav and the TMC's Saugata Roy are among the petitioners. The plea alleges large-scale deletion of voters and irregularities in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls. Its exact prayers have not been made public, and no hearing date had been reported. Whether it is tagged with the SIR matters listed for Tuesday is now the open question.

The Chief Justice spoke for himself in court this morning. Hearing mentions about the protests, CJI Surya Kant agreed to list pleas on Tuesday, including one from the Supreme Court Bar Association on the alleged assault and detention of lawyers. He also warned that protests must not disrupt the court or drag it into politics, The Week and The Tribune reported. That sits alongside Tuesday's contempt hearing over Saturday's metro and rail curbs.

Before the march, Rahul Gandhi used a press conference to escalate. He told CEC Gyanesh Kumar to resign and "turn approver", and claimed, without offering proof, that Kumar had been sending him messages. The Election Commission has still not responded publicly to the resignation demand, nor to these new claims.

The government side pushed back hard. BJP spokesperson Gaurav Bhatia accused Rahul Gandhi of turning constitutional questions into theatre, citing the CJI's refusal to meet him. Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath said the opposition blames voting machines and the EC when it loses, and accused the Congress of spreading anarchy.

Two other moves widen the fight. Delhi Police, in an order dated Sunday, removed Jantar Mantar from the list of protest sites. Ramlila Maidan, Burari Ground and CBD Ground replace it, on the recommendation of a Home Ministry committee, The Tribune reported. Congress leader Jairam Ramesh called it a sign that democracy no longer matters to the government. In Thiruvananthapuram, the Kerala Assembly passed a resolution moved by Chief Minister V D Satheesan seeking Kumar's removal and a new selection panel that includes the CJI. The resolution has no legal force. Removing a CEC needs Parliament.

The other loop from this morning has closed too. Retail inflation rose to 5.54% in September from 4.83% in August, official data showed, close to what economists had forecast. Food inflation jumped to 7.74% from 5.97%. Onions were up 108% on a year ago. Rural households felt it more, at 6.08%, than urban ones at 4.88%. For families already watching Delhi's street fight, the kitchen bill is the quieter story with longer legs.