Morning Pulse: Gautam set for oath in Gangtok as SIR critics plan permit-free marches for 23 October

Dushyant Kumar Gautam is due to take the oath as Governor of Sikkim at Lok Bhavan in Gangtok today, the day after protesters demanding that his appointment be cancelled were stopped at India Gate. A new coalition has called permit-free marches against the Chief Election Commissioner for Friday, and a Union minister has answered the protest wave by calling it a conspiracy. This is the first Pulse since Friday afternoon. The common thread is the same as last week: the government says its decisions stand and the process is lawful; its critics say the only place left to object is the street.

Gautam reached Gangtok on Sunday, The Sentinel reported early this morning. Chief Minister Prem Singh Tamang, ministers, MLAs, the Chief Secretary and the police chief received him at the Burtuk helipad. Late on Sunday night The Tribune reported that about 100 people from Uttarakhand, including members of the Progressive Women's Unity Centre, had tried to march to Rashtrapati Bhavan. Police stopped them at India Gate under Section 163 prohibitory orders. They want the appointment cancelled and a court-supervised probe into the 2022 murder of Ankita Bhandari. Ankita's family alleges Gautam had a role in her death. He denies it, he was not among the three men convicted in 2023, and, as The Sentinel notes, no court has found any link. The CBI is examining the alleged "VIP" angle. We found no response from the government or the BJP to the 24-hour ultimatum Ankita's parents issued last week.

On the SIR, the next date is 23 October. People Against SIR, a platform formed on 14 October at Surjeet Bhavan in New Delhi by groups of farmers, workers, students, women, Adivasis, Dalits and minorities, has called a nationwide "People's March to Reclaim Democracy". Amar Ujala (via PTI) reported the call late on Sunday, and Webdunia carried it this morning. Marchers will carry the tricolour at district and tehsil headquarters, state capitals and in Delhi. The platform says it will not seek police permission. Its demands: Parliament should impeach CEC Gyanesh Kumar and remove him, a case should be registered against him, the SIR should be scrapped, and Jantar Mantar should be restored as a protest site. It alleges that 13.41 crore names have been removed from the rolls. That is the platform's own figure. Neither report verifies it, and neither carries a response from the Election Commission.

The government's side came from Kiren Rijiju. In a Hindi post on X with a video on Sunday, the Parliamentary Affairs Minister alleged that "anti-India gangs and some politicians" had plotted to incite young people to violence, as in Bangladesh and France. He said a change of government could come only through elections, "not through Soros", Outlook and PTI reported. The video featured AISA's Neha Bora, lawyer Prashant Bhushan, Yogendra Yadav and Rahul Gandhi. Bhushan has argued that seeking a change of government is a democratic right, and Rajya Sabha MP Kapil Sibal has rejected the Bangladesh comparison. We found no reply from the Congress to Rijiju by this morning.

Closing a loop from Friday's watch list: the Cockroach Janta Party's 5 pm Tiranga call at Connaught Place did not go ahead as planned. Police detained founder Abhijeet Dipke on his way to the march, ThePrint (via PTI) reported that night. An officer put the number of people detained at Connaught Place at about 150.

Punjab is next on the political map. Amit Shah visits on Tuesday to meet the families of anti-drug activist Parvinder Singh Jhota, who was shot dead in Mansa on 13 October, and of two other men whose deaths have been linked to drugs, The Tribune and Webdunia reported. He has accused the AAP government of letting drug peddlers operate under its patronage. Jhota's action committee says it will boycott Shah's Mansa visit and has accused the BJP of exploiting public sympathy. We found no direct AAP reply in these reports.

On the economy, the oil companies' ethanol tender for the 2026-27 supply year leaves out ethanol made from sugarcane juice, sugar syrup and B-heavy molasses. Business Standard reported that the aim is to protect domestic sugar supplies while keeping petrol blending going, and Webdunia reported that maize, broken rice and other grains will be used instead.

Bank results came in over the weekend. HDFC Bank's standalone profit rose 4.7% to Rs 19,510 crore in the September quarter, and ICICI Bank's rose 20.1% to Rs 14,843 crore, with its margin slipping to 4.18%, Business Standard and Business Today reported. On Friday the Sensex closed at 74,729.27 and the Nifty at 23,146.15. GIFT Nifty points to a muted start, with Brent near $108 and Asian markets lower. UltraTech Cement, Bajaj Finance and Hindustan Zinc report today.