With an eye on assembly elections scheduled in another four months in Tamil Nadu, archrivals M Karunanidhi and Jayalalithaa on Thursday virtually turned their customary New Year greetings into poll messages. Karunanidhi said his government's initiatives like the new Assembly-Secretariat complex in Chennai, the five-day World Classical Tamil conference in Coimbatore, celebrations to mark the 1000th year existence of the temple at Thanjavur were the proud achievements.
Karthik Thondaiman defeated his nearest rival Jahir Hussain of the DMDK, ensuring yet another cakewalk for the Jayalalithaa-led party which had earlier won Tiruchirappalli (West) and Sankarankoil bypolls held in 2011 and early this year since coming to power over a year ago. Thondaiman romped home by a margin of 71,000 votes over Hussain, with the result increasing the AIADMK's tally in the 234-member assembly to 150
Watch all the debates and discussions live.
Watch all the debates and discussions live.
The PM expressed gratitude to the MPs voting in favour of the bill and hoped that it will alleviate sufferings of many who faced persecution.
Tearing into her arch-rival and Chief Minister M Karunanidhi's "convoluted defence" of his daughter Kanimozhi on the 2G scam issue, All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo Jayalalithaa on Saturday demanded that his entire family be chargesheeted "if the interest of justice is to be met".
Seeking to mollify allies miffed over its 'unilateral' announcement of candidates for 160 constituencies in Tamil Nadu, the AIADMK on Saturday concluded seat sharing arrangements with the Left parties and other allies for the April 13 assembly polls. The AIADMK is continuing its talks with the DMDK even as the process of filing of nominations for 234 seats begins on Saturday. The hectic political activity in the AIADMK camp continued till the wee hours of Saturday.
The leaders of the Left parties, G Ramakrishnan (Communist Party of India-Marxist) D Pandian (CPI), and Kathiravan of All India Forward Bloc along with Puthiya Tamizhagam leader Dr K Krishnasamy and All India Moovendar Munnetra Kazhagam leader Dr N Sethuraman, were holding talks among themselves and planned to meet Vijayakant jointly to evolve a common strategy
DMDK founder-president Vijayakant along with party presidium chairman Panruti Ramachandran and Youth wing secretary Sudheesh called on Jayalalithaa at her Poes Garden residence in Chennai on Friday night to cement the pact under which the party had been allotted 41 seats, a joint statement released to the media said.
Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voters' list commenced in nine states and three Union territories on Tuesday, amid objections from several parties with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee leading the anti-SIR offensive in West Bengal with a rally in Kolkata and alleging 'silent, invisible rigging' through the exercise.
The April 13 Assembly polls in the Union Territory of Puducherry is shaping up to be a face-off between two fronts -- the ruling Congress-DMK combine and the oppositon All India NR Congress- All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam alliance.
The ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu has won the Erode East bypoll with a massive margin, defeating actor-politician Seeman's NTK. The victory is seen as a boost for the DMK ahead of next year's Assembly elections. DMK candidate V C Chandhirakumar trounced Naam Tamilar Katchi's (NTK) M K Seethalakshmi by a margin of 91,558 votes, leading to the NTK forfeiting its deposit. Chief Minister and DMK president Stalin attributed the win to the DMK government's good governance, while AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami termed it a "fake" victory. The bypoll was necessitated due to the death of Congress MLA EVKS Elangovan last year.
A Ganesh Nadar catches up with Jayalalithaa on her campaign trail in Tuticorin district.
Leader of Opposition in Lok Sabha Sushma Swaraj will lead a fourteen-member Parliament delegation to Sri Lanka on Monday to study the alleged human rights violation during the operations against Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam in the north eastern province of the island nation.
Will Parliament function on ninth day of second leg of budget session.
The Vaiko-led Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Monday announced boycotting the June 27 by-poll to Radhakrishnan Nagar constituency in Chennai, against AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa.
Petitions challenging the election of Union Minister M K Azhagiri, leader of Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam Parliamentary party T R Baalu and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Member of Parliament P Kumar have been filed in the Madras High Court, seeking to declare the poll outcome as null and void.
Following up on her successful rally in Trichy in the run-up to the 2011 assembly elections in Tamil Nadu, All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam president J Jayalaithaa on Monday staged a mammoth rally in Madurai.
The Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the Tamil Nadu unit of the Congress are gearing up for the assembly polls in the state, scheduled to be held next year. Unconfirmed reports indicate that the Congress' political emissaries from Delhi are in constant touch with both the DMK and the AIADMK.The first meeting to discuss pre-poll arrangements was held on Saturday, when Home Minister P Chidambaram met DMK chief Karunanidhi.
The notices were served under the anti-defection law.
Jayalalithaa had accused Finance Minister P Chidambaram of having a vested interest in jeopardising India's security and sponsoring economic terrorism in India, who was turning a blind eye towards the inflow of terror funds through participatory notes. She also said that 'dirty' money was finding its way into the country through PNs while demanding invoking of provisions of the Benami Transactions (Prohibition) Act to find out the genuineness of these p-notes.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Thursday allotted six constituencies to ally Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi for the April 6 assembly elections in Tamil Nadu.
A war of words erupted between the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and the DMDK over a hike in bus fares and milk prices last year, which soon turned into a one-on-one clash between Jayalalithaa and Vijayakanth with members on either side up on their feet, causing noisy scenes.
The ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam has bagged a mayor's post and is leading in all 10 corporations including Chennai as counting of votes, polled during the two-phased Tamil Nadu civic polls on October 17 and 19, was taken up on Friday.
In a keenly watched outcome, counting of votes in the bye-elections to one constituency each in Tamil Nadu and Union Territory of Puducherry will be taken up on Thursday.
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.
Livid at Puducherry Chief Minister N Rangasamy's 'unilateral' decision to form a single-party rule despite an alliance with her party, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa on Thursday accused him of 'backstabbing' her party. As cracks developed in their alliance within a few days after All-India NR Congress leader Rangasamy assumed office as chief minister, Jayalalithaa charged him with "betraying" the AIADMK by his "unilateral" announcement.
State Governor Surjit Singh Barnala administered oath of secrecy to Jayalalithaa at the Madras University's centenary auditorium in Chennai.
In the AIADMK-led front, the Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam was forging ahead in 23, the Communist Party of India-Marxist in 10 and the CPI in five constituencies. All top leaders of the AIADMK including Jayalalithaa, O Panneerselvam and K A Sengotaiyan, DMDK founder Vijaykanth, DMK patriarch and Chief Minister M Karunanidhi and his son M K Stalin were leading over their nearest rivals
The Supreme Court has ordered a CBI probe into the Karur stampede, prompting varied reactions from political parties. DMK claims misrepresentation in the petition, while AIADMK sees the decision as a setback for DMK. Other parties express their views on the investigation and its implications.
The Supreme Court overturned a Madras High Court order restricting the Tamil Nadu government from using the names and photographs of current and former chief ministers in welfare schemes. The court also imposed a fine on the AIADMK leader who filed the initial plea.
Court summons for Congress President Sonia Gandhi and vice president Rahul Gandhi have clearly made the party extremely jittery. But Subramanian Swamy, the man who dragged them to court, believes he has hit gold.
In a embarrassment to the government, Opposition parties in Rajya Sabha on Thursday forced deferment of a bill that aimed at allowing Border Security Force to operate at places other than border areas.
Watch the live telecast from the Parliament.
Stepping up her campaign for former Lok Sabha speaker P A Sangma's candidature for Presidency, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo Jayalalithaa on Sunday contacted top leaders of several non-Congress parties including Bharatiya Janata Party veteran L K Advani, seeking their support to the tribal leader.
The Tamil Nadu government on Wednesday filed a defamation case against former chief minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi in a Sessions Court in Chennai.
Tamil Nadu chief minister J Jayalalithaa's aspirations to be prime minister seem entirely logical with more multi-cornered contests, uncertainty in Andhra Pradesh and the winner-takes-all history of elections in Tamil Nadu. Praveen Chakravarty explains.
Embarrassed over All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam members shouting slogans against a visiting Parliamentary delegation from Sri Lanka, Speaker Meira Kumar on Monday expressed anguish about the incident and offered her "sincere apologies" for it. "She expressed anguish and offered sincere apologies over slogan shouting by some Members of Parliament in the House when the visiting delegation was witnessing the proceedings of the Lok Sabha," a Lok Sabha release said.
The ruling All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhaga on Monday charged Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi with having encroached on some land behind his Gopalpuram residence and said legal action would be taken in this regard and in similar cases detected by the government government.
The massive 10 per cent swing reflected the public fury against the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam regime, hit by the 2G spectrum scam, power cut, skyrocketing prices and deteriorating law and order.