Tamil Nadu will elect a new government on April 23.
Will the DMK retain power? Can the AIADMK spring a surprise? And what about Vijay's TVK? A Ganesh Nadar surveys the election landscape a day after the Election Commission announced the poll schedule.
Senior Congress functionary Praveen Chakravarty has questioned the DMK's flagship women's assistance scheme, suggesting it's superstitious to believe it alone will ensure electoral success, citing examples of similar schemes failing to secure victories for other parties.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Saturday claimed that Governor R N Ravi 'insulted' the gubernatorial position he holds, by not reading out the speech at the commencement of the assembly session.
Actor Vijay, founder of the Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) party, has declared that his party will challenge the ruling DMK in the 2026 Tamil Nadu Assembly elections. In a general council meeting, Vijay criticized the DMK's dynasty politics, their handling of law and order, and women's safety. He also targeted the BJP-led central government over issues like the Waqf Bill, delimitation, and the three-language policy. Vijay promised his party's support to working classes, government employees, and vowed to oppose projects harmful to natural resources and agriculture. He assured 100% safety for women and strict law and order if TVK forms the government. The party passed resolutions opposing the Waqf Bill, delimitation, and the three-language policy, and also voiced support for the two-language policy, finding a permanent solution for fishermen's issues, and opposing the Parandur airport project.
The Supreme Court of India will examine the age limits for surrogate mothers and other provisions of the Surrogacy Regulation Act and Assisted Reproductive Technology (Regulation) Act on February 11. The court has asked the government to file its written submissions on the matter. The laws set age limits for intended parents and surrogate mothers, restricting commercial surrogacy and emphasizing altruistic surrogacy. The court is also considering alternative mechanisms for compensating surrogate mothers and has proposed a designated authority for disbursing payments instead of intended couples.
Dhanush deserves credit for imagining a visually rich, edgy action thriller which is enhanced by a fascinating background score from A R Rahman, observes Divya Nair.
If the DMK is able to sustain the momentum until the assembly polls, the AIADMK especially and the PMK and possibly the infant TVK too would find it hard to sign up with the BJP, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
Prime Video will stream the recent blockbuster from September 7.
In private, questions are being raised about the wisdom of a 'dual-SIM' leadership during the long run-up to the 2026 assembly polls where 'family rule' could become an election issue, reports N Sathiya Moorthy.
I don't remember Rajinikanth beheading anyone so brutally in any of his previous films. Or glamourising so much of blood and violence. This is an altogether different version of a brutal Ra1jinikanth, something you and I had probably never imagined before, observes Divya Nair.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Muthuvel Karunanidhi Stalin turned 70 on March 1, 2023.
The home ministry on Thursday announced the Padma awards which included five Padma Bhushan, 17 Padma Bhushan and 110 Padma Shri.
In focus are the assembly polls in 2026. From a BJP perspective, their attack on the ruling DMK, using the 'Hindutva' card, and Annamalai's targeting of both Dravidian majors on corruption has not worked, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
'What happened to Andhra Pradesh? It is the perfect example of the transientness of Federal Units.' 'Federalism is a transient thing in this country.'
The Tamil Nadu chief minister and his family were no doubt overwhelmed by his Bengal counterpart's generosity.
Bharatiya Janata Party Supremo and Prime Minister Narendra Damodardas Modi is embraced by a 103-year-old supporter in Dahod.
'The governor was a senior IPS officer who should know the Constitution.'
Any narrative against the Dravidian model may impact the BJP's prospects in Tamil Nadu. This may explain why the BJP in Tamil Nadu is placing more emphasis on corruption allegations against the DMK, even as the party focuses nationally on the Sanatana controversy.
'This is the real purpose behind the arrest, and it is not about controlling corruption.' 'It is like taking Amit Shah into custody before the 2024 elections.' 'How will it affect the BJP's election machinery?'
The plea, filed by Chennai resident Arun Muthuvel, has said that both the Acts fall short in fully addressing the essential goal of regulating surrogacy and other assisted reproductive techniques.
What is noticeable in both movies is the willingness with which both the ageing stars -- Kamal is 68 and Rajini, four years older at 72 with a kidney transplant that he has not shied away from acknowledging -- have learnt to respect their age and bodies, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Congress is planning to call a meeting of Opposition parties in May. It is possible to keep all possibilities open in case Karnataka yields a hung House, leading to a recalibrated Opposition.
The BJP has nothing to lose after a point. For the DMK it is a difficult choice, as it would not want to give too much of space to a 'national party' lest the 'Dravidian duel' of the past decades should be lost forever, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Kaviya Maran is the co-owner of the Sunrisers Hyderabad team.
His likable boy-next-door face and casual approach to public speaking have a unique appeal for the younger generation, but it stops there, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
]If Andhra Pradesh's middle class is denied salaries and pensions or, if these are delayed, it will rise against Jagan Mohan Reddy with the same fervour with which it voted him in.
The AIADMK is convinced that the BJP will remain an electoral burden for a long time to come, beginning the Lok Sabha polls next year, reveals N Sathiya Moorthy.
His father Somappa Rayappa Bommai was the state chief minister during 1988-1989.
Governor Banwarilal Purohit administered the oath of office and secrecy to 68-year old Stalin, for whom this would be the first stint as CM
The BJP continuing to look at the Dravidian polity through the religious prism has not worked in Tamil Nadu whereas it has yielded political and electoral results across much of the rest of the country, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
If Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai bought it in 2015, did he get prior approval from the Union home ministry, and did he include it in his annual wealth returns, sections of the media want to know. N Sathiya Moorthy on the curious case of the 'Rafale' watch.
''He had given tools to fight all forms of homogenisation.'
What does Udhayanidhi's induction as minister mean? For the DMK, it indicates the future course, direction and leadership. It is continuity with change, and change with continuity, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Tamil Nadu's voters wanted tough leaders at the helm, to the point of being autocratic. It was what Karunanidhi, MGR and Jayalalithaa ended up becoming, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Sports personalities from all the country took to Twitter to pay homage to the former chief minister of Tamil Nadu.
Former Union Minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader M K Alagiri was on Friday suspended from the party on charges of going against the party's stand and airing divergent views on the issue of stitching an alliance with Vijaykant's Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam.
Factionalism between OP Panneerselvam and Edappadi Palaniswami, the dominance of the BJP, the ruling DMK having a strong face in the form of CM Stalin, 'community and region-based politics', corruption charges against former ministers, and lack of a proper ideology are the major challenges the party is facing in the state.
O Panneerselvam should not be surprised if the current controversy that he has kicked off is used to rid him of the party coordinator's post, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
"Stalin is the future of the party," said late Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam patriarch M Karunanidhi about six years ago at a party meet when his son was party treasurer.
M K Stalin might not have his father's charisma, but he has learnt the ropes the long, hard way, feels T E Narasimhan
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