Batters launched balls so high into the sky that they looked like rockets taking off from the centre square.
V K Sasikala, a close aide of the late J Jayalalithaa, has announced the launch of a new political party in Tamil Nadu, potentially leading to a four-way contest in the upcoming state Assembly elections.
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.
Whether it was in the company of superstars Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan -- or, on rare occasions with both together, among others -- Saravanan's demeanour would stand out, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'He was able to push the AIADMK to the background.'
Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam chief Vijay launched his state-wide campaign in Tiruchirappalli, encountering an audio glitch. He criticized both the central government and the DMK government in Tamil Nadu, stating his intention to serve the people, not to amass wealth.
'Vijay should have stayed there for the night and in the morning he should have met the people.'
The two weeks that EPS took fending off the Sengottaiyan rebellion has since become lost time for the AIADMK as that was also the time Vijay took to go all-out against Stalin and the DMK, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Vijay, with his chief ministerial ambitions, is a one-man army, at least as of now, and his campaign team considers him omnipresent. He has to be present in all districts, if not all constituencies at the same time, as there is no second-line leader or platform speaker in the party, who can draw crowds, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
BJP MP and actor Ravi Kishan has been awarded the Sansad Ratna for his outstanding performance in the Lok Sabha, becoming the first actor-turned-politician to receive the honour.
AIADMK leader Edappadi K Palaniswami is under pressure from his party as his unclear stand on the BJP alliance has brought back fears among party workers that the party may lose its identity, be forced into an unwanted coalition, and be taken over by the BJP later, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Madras High Court has vacated a stay against the Election Commission probing internal disputes within the AIADMK, including the leadership and party symbol issues. This ruling is seen as a setback for the incumbent AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami. The court dismissed Palaniswami's petition seeking a stay against the EC's investigation into the leadership tussle and the allocation of the Two Leaves symbol to the AIADMK. The court directed the Election Commission to conduct the probe under the Election Symbols rules. This decision could have significant implications for the future of the AIADMK, as it allows the Election Commission to proceed with its investigation into the internal disputes within the party.
While acknowledging that they needed strong allies for a chance in the assembly polls, AIADMK cadres seemingly prefer actor-politician Vijay's Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam to the BJP, owing to the latter's 'communal agenda' and consequent hardline Hindutva image, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
Whether or not today's protest against NEP escalates into a full-fledged struggle across the state remained in the hands of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi-led BJP government, he said.
The three-language formula proposed in the National Education Policy 2020, is at the centre of the political row between the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam-led Tamil Nadu government and the central government.
Vijay said the TVK respected all languages but would not give up its self respect for another language.
'Why should children, who are already burdened with so many subjects, be over-burdened with three languages?'
'The vast majority of BJP supporters in Tamil Nadu can't speak any language other than Tamil.' 'When rural Tamil Nadu can't speak any other language than Tamil, how are they going to convince them that they have to learn Hindi?'
'There was a time when a movie star could win an election just by stepping into politics. That era is over.'
For those who want a chance to take a closer look at some of India's Cinema Greats, the AVM Heritage Museum in Vadapalani, Chennai, is a good place to start.
Annamalai has faced criticism for the breakup between the AIADMK and the BJP, but BJP leaders say 'he attracts youth, who needs change'.
Ironically, rival Tamil Nadu governments expend the most on social welfare schemes, especially targeting women and youth and children, but that money comes only by selling more liquor. There is always the specious plea, which has been peddled very many times in the past, that without licensed liquor, drinkers would go after hooch and there could be more hooch tragedies and hooch deaths. No one is convinced, but no one can dispute it either, comments N Sathiya Moorthy.
'We are not worried about raids. We have nothing to hide.'
The INDIA bloc has 95 MPs in Rajya Sabha of which 45 were suspended on Monday.
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.
Justice N Seshasayee said in his order on September 15 that the court is conscious of 'the very vociferous, and at time noisy debates on pro and anti Sanatan Dharma' and the court could not help pondering over with genuine concern for what is going around.
On one hand, South Indian states have been complaining about denial of a proportionate portion of the sharable funds from the Centre, based on population. On the other hand, they stand to lose Lok Sabha and Rajya Sabha seats that again are based on population, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Will Vijay will go the most successful MGR/Jayalalithaa way, or that of Vijayakanth, Seeman or Kamalahaasan, or will he end up as another Rajinikanth who cries wolf at the last minute and quits the scene even before it all had really begun, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
However, Karunanidhi said he was not bothered even about his life and that democracy was important for him.
The bickering between allies All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and Bharatiya Janata Party in Tamil Nadu over late Dravidian stalwart C N Annadurai peaked on Monday with the regional party snapping ties with the saffron organisation, saying it cannot tolerate any affront to the late chief minister and its other leaders.
The Tamil Nadu assembly on Monday adopted a resolution to urge the Centre and the President to fix a timeframe for state governors to approve bills adopted by the respective houses.
BJP veterans whom K Annamalai has reportedly sidelined are upset over his 'immature' way of handling allies, reveals N Sathiya Moorthy.
Meanwhile, several Twitter users linked Rahman's post apparently to Union Home Minister Amit Shah's remark on Hindi and subsequent reactions from several quarters.
Udayanidhi has handed over to the BJP one real issue to draw the line between it and the INDIA alliance, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
The breakfast scheme for government school students from class 1 to 5 was launched in Madurai on Thursday by Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin who served and ate the food along with the children.
A recent survey discovered that Bengaluru has some of the classiest high streets in our country.
Governors must be impartial, fair, and above narrow politics to uphold the values and spirit of the Constitution. But in a rapidly changing political culture where the unstated rule is to crush the Opposition, such values have no meaning. At stake are Constitutional values, federalism and governance, asserts Ramesh Menon.
From the voter-level, traditionally anti-BJP, anti-Hindutva minorities and other secular voters would have an option, especially in the face of the mounting anti-incumbency against the ruling party -- as it happened in the 2001 assembly polls, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Stalin is preparing the DMK to go the whole hog in making 'federalism', 'Tamil self-respect' and 'communal cohesiveness' the party's poll plank next year, and package the BJP and its possible allies, as 'divisive' and 'reactionary', predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
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