The present strength of the electoral college is 781 as six seats are vacant in the Rajya Sabha and one in the Lok Sabha. This puts the majority mark at 391. The NDA has 425 MPs, while the opposition camp has the backing of 324.
The privileges committee of the Maharashtra legislature will issue a show cause notice to stand-up comic Kunal Kamra for his remarks against Deputy Chief Minister Eknath Shinde. Shiv Sena (UBT) leader Sushma Andhare will also receive a notice.
The Tamil Nadu Assembly passed a resolution on Thursday condemning the Centre's proposed Waqf Amendment Bill 2024, calling for its recall. Chief Minister M K Stalin argued that the amendment interferes with religious affairs and would negatively impact the Muslim minority. The resolution was unanimously passed by the Assembly, with support from all parties, including the opposition AIADMK and PMK. The BJP, however, walked out in protest, accusing the ruling DMK of engaging in divisive politics. The bill aims to streamline the Waqf Board's work and ensure efficient management of Waqf properties but has been criticized for potentially encroaching on religious freedom and autonomy. The Tamil Nadu government claims that the amendment would lead to government control over the Waqf Board and its properties, impacting its autonomy and potentially allowing for government acquisition of Muslim-owned lands.
The Bharatiya Janata Party-led National Democratic Alliance was surging ahead in two southern states -- Andhra Pradesh and Karnataka -- while the respective blocs led by the ruling Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Tamil Nadu and Congress in Kerala were on their way for another excellent show, going by the latest trends emerging from the counting of voted polled in the just concluded Lok Sabha polls.
'I don't want to be called a new Indian voter when I am an old Indian voter.'
The All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Monday questioned Tamil Nadu Bharatiya Janata Party chief K Annamalai's intention to criticise the party despite being in the alliance, and said it will be forced to rethink its ties with the saffron party if Annamalai is not restrained.
Tamil Nadu's Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin has reacted to Andhra Pradesh counterpart Pawan Kalyan's out-of-turn taunts with a one-liner, 'Let's wait', and thereby hangs a tale, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
C R Kesavan, great grandson of noted freedom fighter and India's last governor general C Rajagopalachari, joined the Bharatiya Janata Party on Saturday as the party aims to boost its presence in southern India.
BJP and RSS leaders are once again pushing to remove the words 'secular' and 'socialist' from the Constitution's Preamble, showing a deeper effort to change India's identity from a diverse, multi-religious republic to a Hindu-first nation, even though they don't have the numbers in Parliament to officially change the Constitution, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday hit out at the BJP-led government at the Centre, alleging the delay in giving approval to the construction of the Mekedatu balancing reservoir over the river Cauvery, and accused neighbouring Tamil Nadu of causing "unnecessary nuisance" on the issue.
'Tamil Nadu is a paradox. We have more places of Hindu worship per square kilometres than any other place in the world. 'We break more coconuts for religious reasons everyday than any other place in the world.' 'At the same time, we also have a very strong Periyar-infused movement of rationalism.'
If the idea was to garner AIADMK votes with or without the three faction leaders after the party broke ties with the NDA, it may not work after all, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'The people of Tamil Nadu in particular Chennai know about the double standards of the BJP. Nothing will work for them here.'
The two sections were not retained in the new bills as the government thought they will go against the judgments of the Supreme Court.
'What should surprise BJP supporters is Modi's call for 'stability' at the manifesto launch, a theme that he and his team members had not touched ahead of the Lok Sabha polls in 2014 and 2019.' 'The last time the party called for 'stability at the Centre' was in 1998 and 1999,' recalls N Sathiya Moorthy.
State school education minister Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi assured that action will be taken against the speaker for his controversial speech at a government school in Chennai.
Kashyap, who is currently out on bail, joined the BJP in the presence Anil Baluni, its national media department in-charge, and co-in-charges Sanjay Mayukh and Manoj Tiwari. His mother was also present during the joining programme in the national capital.
The attack comes a day after senior DMK leader and state Electricity Minister N Veerasamy took strong exception to the reported 'fatwa' by Vedanti for beheading Karunanidhi.
This negated the gain of more than a dozen seats in Odisha, Madhya Pradesh and Kerala.
The Hindu Munnani staged a protest in Madurai, Tamil Nadu, against a group of people consuming non-vegetarian food on the sacred Thiruparankundram hill. The protest, which was initially banned, was allowed by the Madras High Court with some restrictions. Several thousands of devotees, Hindu Munnani functionaries, and BJP members participated in the protest, raising slogans hailing Murugan (Lord Subrahmanya). Hindu Munnani state president Kadeshwara Subramaniam and scores of activists were arrested.
The Tamil Nadu Prohibition (Amendment) Act, 2024, which shall come into force on such date as notified by the government, aims to completely eradicate the menace of illicit liquor from the state.
After perusing the transcript of the statements given in the interview, a bench of Justices Sanjiv Khanna and Dipankar Datta observed, "Prima facie, there is no hate speech. No case is made out."
If women voters are mobilised in big numbers to the voting booths on November 6 and 11 by the Nitish Kumar-led NDA, then it will be quite difficult for the Tejashwi Yadav-led Mahagathbandhan to defeat the incumbent government, points out Sheela Bhatt.
A senior functionary of Naam Tamilar Katchi was hacked to death by an unidentified gang in Tamil Nadu's Madurai on Tuesday, and four persons were arrested in connection with the murder, police said.
The Bharatiya Janata Party's Tamil Nadu unit chief L Murugan was on Friday detained at Tiruttani near Chennai by the police when he tried to embark on a statewide 'Vel Yatra', defying a ban.
Joining the BJP at its national headquarters, Annamalai heaped praise on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he embodies a leader's qualities of fearlessness, courage, knowledge and giving spirit.
The BJP-led government's decision to grant Kunbi status to individuals from the Maratha community has opened a Pandora's box.
TVK cadres are worried, the leadership looks weak, and the party is not fully prepared for the 2026 elections, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'I declared myself a Sikh. We want freedom from caste discrimination.'
The controversy surrounding Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar's visit to Sadhguru Jaggi Vasudev's Isha yoga centre in Tamil Nadu for Mahashivaratri celebrations continues to simmer, with leaders within the state Congress unit expressing differing views on the issue. Cooperative Minister K N Rajanna questioned the appropriateness of Shivakumar sharing the stage with those who have been critical of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, while former MP D K Suresh defended his brother, emphasizing that Shivakumar has always kept the party informed about his engagements. The incident has sparked a debate within the Congress party, with leaders like Satish Jarkiholi and M B Patil defending Shivakumar's attendance.
If Modi was really keen on Katchatheevu, he could have reclaimed that island during his 10 years in office, he said.
The announcement was made by AIADMK coordinator and deputy chief minister O Panneerselvam and Union Minister and senior BJP leader Piyush Goyal, party election in-charge for Tamil Nadu, who described it as a "mega alliance".
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Sunday said his government has always taken care of the welfare of Sri Lankan Tamils and 'consistently' flagged the issue of their rights with the leaders in the island nation.
Indicating that Tamil Nadu will soon follow Maharashtra in witnessing a regime change, state Bharatiya Janata Party chief K Annamalai has claimed "an Eknath Shinde will emerge in" the state, comments that were dismissed outright by the ruling party.
BJP strategists are missing something somewhere, and they have not acknowledged it, to be able to repair it in good time, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
With its age-old fascination for education, southern states have done better than the North. Start-ups, IT hubs, and industry majors setting up shop have changed the face of the South. Nearly 79% of global offices set up by international conglomerates in India are in the South. Almost 46% of tech unicorns are from the South. The GDP per person in the South is 4.2 times higher than the North. None of these indicators can be ignored by any central government, whatever the political compulsions, notes Ramesh Menon.
There is an impression within the Tamil Nadu BJP -- although no one is airing it -- that over-exposure for Narendra Modi over the past months may work against party candidates, as they have triggered a near-continuous social media debate on his achievements and failures, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Will Annamalai's attacks on the DMK revert the anti-BJP feeling in Tamil Nadu, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
Annapoorna chain of restaurants owner Srinivasan is seen purportedly highlighting concerns over varying GST rates. In the second video, Srinivasan was seen purportedly apologising in person to the Finance Minister.
He said the Tamil Nadu BJP has written to Union Home Minister Amit Shah seeking a transfer of the case to the National Investigation Agency.
