'The Congress can exist without (someone from) the Nehru-Gandhi family being its president.'
The meeting of the newly-elected MLAs to elect the legislature party leader, the second within three days, reportedly saw exchanges on who should lead the party in the House with one section pitching for Palaniswami and the other for coordinator O Panneerselvam.
By getting the Tamil Nadu assembly to act on his very imaginative public declaration to keep petro-chemical industries out of the Cauvery delta, which has traditionally been a DMK stronghold, Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami has not only set the ball rolling for the assembly elections due a year later but also sent out a strong message to the BJP government at the Centre, which took a unilateral decision to exempt petro-complexes from environmental clearance, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Visible symbols of the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam have undergone a dramatic change and on Thursday, the most dramatic of them all was seen when V K Sasikala was made the face of the party on the posters, replacing late J Jayalalithaa.
At a condolence meeting, organised by the South Indian Artistes' Association for the late CM, Rajinikanth also recalled his strong statements against her during the 1996 assembly polls, which had "hurt" her.
The bonhomie between Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa and Prime Minister Narendra Modi was once again in evidence on Tuesday, but the question remains if it will translate into supporting the BJP in the Rajya Sabha. Senior journalist R Rajagopalan reports.
He also launched 70-lakh tree sapling planting drive to commemorate the 70th birth anniversary celebrations of late Jayalalithaa.
Since the demise of former All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supremo and chief minister J Jayalalithaa in December last year, Tamil Nadu's political scenario has witnessed unprecedented drama. Following is the chronology of major events in the southern state's ruling party.
The Madras high court on Friday dismissed a PIL seeking a direction to the Union government to confer the Bharat Ratna on late AIADMK leader J Jayalalithaa, saying it does not want to interfere in such matters.
With the presidential elections over, the time has come for Prime Minister Modi to show Tamil Nadu that the state's interests are safe under him, says R Rajagopalan.
If the people of Tamil Nadu stop deifying their leaders and start evaluating them more objectively, the political masters too may change their wayward behaviour, argues Sudhir Bisht.
The hospital said she 'continues to be under treatment and observation for all vital parameters, respiratory support and passive physiotherapy'.
Pandian alleged that Jaya died under unnatural circumstances and demanded a probe on her hospitalisation.
Sasikala said that she was looking for an "explanation" why Governor Ch Vidyasagar Rao refused to give her an audience despite many requests.
Ponnaiyan said the chief minister was doing 'physical exercises' and undergoing 'physiotherapy', was eating food on her own and advising officers on issues related to government and party activities.
In a letter to PM Modi, Jayalalithaa referred to the arrest of four Indian fishermen and pointed out that this was the third such incident since May 31.
An inquiry commission, set up by the Tamil Nadu government to probe former chief minister J Jayalalithaa's death, will look into the circumstances leading to her hospitalisation last year and subsequent treatment, the government has said.
Interlinking of rivers, retrieval of Katchatheevu island and inclusion of fishermen in the Scheduled Tribes list are also listed in the memorandum.
It doesn't matter that the man who has been given charge of Jayalalithaa's portfolios today started out opposing her.
The sidelined leader's victory is being seen as a worrying development both for AIADMK and principal opposition Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, which finished third behind the ruling party.
He, however said he will serve people in whatever ways he can without entering electoral politics.
The new entrants in Tamil Nadu politics, actor-turned-politicians Rajinikanth and Kamal Haasan, have decided to stay away from the elections, reports T E Narasimhan.
Sasikala appeared in front of supporters in a dark green sari, a colour greatly favoured by Jayalalithaa.
'In the film she played a chirpy bubbly character. But in person she was quite the opposite. Very dignified, graceful and quiet,' Dharmendra, who starred with Jayalalithaa in her only film, tells Subhash K Jha.
Kanagaraj, 36, was employed at Jayalalithaa's Poes Garden home in Chennai and sacked three years ago.
The threat to Sasikala won't come from the Tamil Nadu chief minister or New Delhi, but from her 20-plus kin, reports R Rajagopalan.
The Tamil Nadu assembly on Tuesday once again adopted the anti-NEET Bill, returned days ago to the government by Governor RN Ravi, with the ruling Dravida Munentra Kazhagam and principal opposition All India Anna DK reaffirming their opposition to the test.
Large number of All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam supporters have been waiting anxiously outside the Apollo Hospital in Chennai since Sunday night for information on ailing chief minister and party supremo Jayalaithaa who suffered a cardiac arrest after days of showing improvement.
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
When the PIL came up, the first bench headed by Chief Justice Sanjay Kishan Kaul observed, "This forum should not be used for political purposes and it is a publicity interest litigation." "The hospital is already issuing health bulletins. PIL is dismissed," the court said.
A Ganesh Nadar captures the mood and scenes from outside the hall in Vaanagaram where Sasikala was appointed as the new party chief.
The chief minister may have Prime Minister Modi's backing.
T Suresh challenged the election of Jayalalithaa contending that his nomination papers were wrongly rejected by the returning officer.
Though both the Dravidian majors are facing questions on family politics, the ruling party especially finds itself in the dock since its late leader J Jayalalithaa had often used it to target her party's archrival DMK.
All India Anna Dravida Munnetra chief V K Sasikala on Wednesday visited the memorial of J Jayalalithaa and the Ramapuram residence of party founder M G Ramachandran before leaving for Bengaluru to surrender before a court.
Prominent celebrity losers include national award-winning actor Suresh Gopi, comedian Dharmajan Bolgatty, actress Priyanka Anoop, actor-anchor Krishnakumar and television serial actor Vivek Gopan.
The big question is: Will her release be a threat to Chief Minister Edappadi K Palaniswami? The answer is, while it may give him moments of nervousness, he will not be replaced, say political experts. T E Narasimhan reports.
Karnataka High Court has set aside the conviction of Jayalalithaa.
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