From the landing of Chandrayaan 3 to the bombardment of Palestine by Israel, a look at some events that shaped the world in the second half of 2023.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi on Wednesday asked his ministers to strongly refute opposition leaders on their controversial comments on Sanatan Dharma and expose them but told his ministerial colleagues to avoid the political row around the Bharat issue noting that it has been the country's ancient name, sources said.
Targeting the Congress, the PM said those who ruled Madhya Pradesh for a long time did nothing else other than corruption and crime.
ndependent of the political fallout, which Stalin has sought to arrest through the withdrawal of the measures as fast as they were introduced, there are concerns about the way those decisions came to be taken, without adequate application of mind, not in official terms but in political and electoral contexts, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
DMK leader MK Stalin is concerned that a no-trust move would force the EPS faction to patch up with not only the OPS group but also the TTV camp and also get the 'Two Leaves' poll symbol unfrozen, which could upset his party's electoral apple cart, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
'What you need is a credible Opposition, a credible platform to persuade people to believe that it can replace this government.'
The war of words between the Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam and its estranged ally Pattali Makkal Katchi continued, with the latter accusing the ruling party of giving up the cause of Sri Lankan Tamils, whenever it came to power in the state. PMK founder S Ramadoss, in a statement, alleged that the DMK organised agitations on the issue when it was in the opposition and when it came to power, it gave up the issue.
The Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Monday said it would soon move a no-confidence motion against Tamil Nadu Assembly Speaker P Dhanapal as it accused him of "deliberately harping on his community to malign" the party.
Throwing its weight behind former telecom minister A Raja, the Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam on Thursday said his arrest does not prove his guilt in the 2G spectrum scam and accused opposition parties of targetting him to "malign" the party.
The move is being seen as an attempt to forge opposition unity to defeat the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance.
Opposition parties Nationalist Congress Party and Samajwadi Party on Wednesday demanded reservation for OBCs in the women's reservation bill and questioned the reason for calling a special session when the bill cannot be implemented before census and delimitation.
'Everyone's voice must be heard. We will be talking to both Kukis and Meiteis'
The opposition parties had till now been calling for a debate under Rule 267, which entails voting, and a statement by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Opposition leaders on Saturday stepped up pressure on Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla for stringent action against Bharatiya Janata Party's Ramesh Bidhuri over his derogatory remarks against Bahujan Samaj Party MP Danish Ali in the House.
If either faction of the AIADMK failed to muster a floor majority, then the governor would be called upon to ask MK Stalin as the leader of the opposition if he would like to try his hand at government formation.
He also launched a strident attack on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, saying he was 'globe-trotting', afraid of facing questions over the Manipur violence.
Panneerselvam had opposed the petition saying the whip was issued only to the 122 MLAs who were then camping in a resort and not his erstwhile group.
The satta market is accepting bets on how many times Modiji will mention Nehru at his election rallies, says A Ganesh Nadar with a wink.
Congress and other parties kept insisting on their demand for suspension of business so the issue could be taken up.
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.
Income tax authorities on Friday launched coordinated searches across different locations in Tamil Nadu linked to state Electricity Minister V Senthil Balaji, police sources said.
For the first time since 1985, Tamil Nadu has voted in favour of an incumbent party which has been a shock to those in Anna Arivalayam -- the office of the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam in Chennai.
While the Raj Bhavan had on Thursday night said it placed the unprecedented 'dismissal' order on hold, the DMK regime asserted it would pick an appropriate action plan to counter and fight the move against the minister by Ravi, even though he backtracked from it.
It is a sea of men clad in veshtis with distinctive party colour border design seeking votes with a smile and folded hands for their party candidates. The town is abuzz, with electioneering at its peak, and teeming trendy cars criss-cross the busy roads and bylanes bringing in more and more leaders from elsewhere for campaign.
However, the tilting factor still remains: Can the rivalling 'Modi brand' of 'soft Hindutva' and 'hard-sell nationalism' garner more votes for the NDA in Tamil Nadu, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam President M Karunanidhi on Tuesday chose to keep the cards close to his chest on the issue of which political outfit his party would strike an alliance to fight next year's Lok Sabha polls.
"The voting percentage is likely to go upwards when reports from all polling stations are obtained as polling is scheduled till 6 pm in many constituencies. Final figures will be known on Saturday after the scrutiny of form 17A," the EC said.
At the end of the day, Stalin expressing solidarity with an arrested colleague is one thing, especially if he too felt that the minister had been wronged, but for him to retain the person in office sets a bad precedent, which would not go unnoticed by voters, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The favourable apex court was a result of the 'divinity' of party stalwarts, the late Chief Ministers M G Ramachandran and J Jayalalithaa, he said at a mass wedding ceremony in Madurai.
We don't have confidence in the chief minister, the MLAs said.
Scenes from the Opposition leaders' dinner meeting, in Bengaluru on Monday, July 17, 2023.
Nachiappan, however, ruled out an alliance with the All-India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, as it was a "replica of the Bharatiya Janata Party".
Ruling constituent Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Thursday joined the opposition in stalling proceedings in Lok Sabha and leading street protest in New Delhi on the issue of the new sugarcane policy and vowed to struggle till the ordinance to fix a uniform price is withdrawn.
The House had to be adjourned twice in the afternoon amid din over the issue and finally for the day, minutes after it reassembled at 3 pm.
The Tamil Nadu government filed a criminal complaint in a sessions court in Chennai on Wednesday against state Bharatiya Janata Party president K Annamalai for defaming Chief Minister M K Stalin.
Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi on Thursday staged an unprecedented walkout from the state assembly following a face-off with Chief Minister M K Stalin over the former's customary address to members of the house in its first session of the year.
Key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and opposition Bharatiya Janata Party were on the same page on Sunday in their criticism of the Centre and the Congress over the handling of the Telangana statehood issue, which has spawned a crisis in Andhra Pradesh.
By keeping the Sanatana Dharma row alive and adding the Ayodhya temple consecration scheduled for January 22 and adding the free darshan promise from four polled states to the entire country, the BJP may have a self-fulfilling concoction, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
Upset over political developments in Maharashtra, the Congress and other opposition parties boycotted Constitution Day celebrations in the Central Hall of Parliament and held a joint protest in front of the Ambedkar statue inside Parliament complex.
Stalin, moving the resolution, said without giving any reasons, Ravi had returned the Bills, mentioning "I withhold Assent" to them.
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