A high-pitched battle between party patriarch Karunanidhi and son MK Stalin for power and the failure to oust corrupt leaders and maintain a clean image has left the party in shambles, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
After a gap of 10 days, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister Jayalalithaa turned up at the state secretariat on Wednesday, putting an end to the Opposition's queries regarding her health condition.
'The last four years was not Dravidian rule, it was BJP rule by proxy.'
A political realignment seems to be on the cards in Tamil Nadu, with the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam reaching out to its former leader and Marumalarchi Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam founder Vaiko.
A day after a senior leader submitted his resignation from the Dravida Munetra Kazhagam demanding that M K Stalin be declared the chief ministerial candidate for the 2016 assembly polls, the M Karunanidhi-led party on Thursday accused him of indiscipline and suspended him from all posts.
'The AIADMK gets votes from all sections of the minorities.' 'By aligning with the BJP the AIADMK stands to lose that vote'
Monday's surprise meeting is an admission by the Bharatiya Janata Party that their purported strategy of hoping to ride the popular 'Modi wave' in a Tamil Nadu without Jaya and a bed-ridden Karunanidhi does not have much chance of success, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
Many leaders from non-Hindi states, especially Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, had opposed the policy.
The internal feud in the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam intensified on Thursday with the high command ordering suspension of five loyalists of M K Alagiri, elder son of party chief M Karunanidhi, over recurring instances of "mischievous posters" in Madurai.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Thursday said he has requested Prime Minister Narendra Modi to provide additional doses of COVID-19 vaccine to the state.
Jahnavi Mehta. Kaviya Maran. Preity Zinta.
A formal decision would be made on the Chief Ministerial candidate of the NDA once the Election Commission issues the notification for the assembly elections, expected in April-May, he said, adding the strategy was part of the ongoing exercise to strengthen the BJP in the state.
Suspended Dravida Munetra Kazhagam leader M K Alagiri, who spoke to our correspondent from Madurai, says that he welcomes Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi becoming the country's prime minister.
Dravida Munettra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi on Tuesday refused to rate the three year performance of the United Progressive Alliance-II government, saying there are "ups and downs" for every government.
Amusing spectacles unfold everyday with candidates attempting a variety of things from donning the role of a chef to washing clothes to woo voters, spicing up the campaign for the April 6 assembly polls in Tamil Nadu.
Making light of M K Alagiri's remarks on his "death", Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam Treasurer M K Stalin on Wednesday asked party men not to burn effigies of his "elder brother", saying party discipline was supreme.
Former Union Minister and Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leader M K Alagiri was on Friday suspended from the party on charges of going against the party's stand and airing divergent views on the issue of stitching an alliance with Vijaykant's Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Thursday warned of action against party MPs if they are found to have addressed a letter to US President Barack Obama against issuing of visa to Gujarat Chief Minister Narendra Modi.
Will the 2016 assembly election be Stalin's to lead the DMK in?
'The financial situation of Tamil Nadu is much worse than it was in 2016.' 'The finance minister's is a horrendous job.' 'I am certainly not going to ask for it.'
Actress Khushboo on Monday quit the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam and hit out at the party leadership for ignoring her "hard work".
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi is "very upset" over rejection of bail to his daughter and party MP Kanimozhi in the 2G spectrum case.
Refuting speculations of split in the alliance between Congress and National Conference, Omar Abdullah said his party has no intention of leaving the alliance.
With election campaign ending in Tamil Nadu before it goes to polls on Thursday, N Sathiya Moorthy lists a few questions uppermost in the minds of voters.
The Jayalalithaa government in Tamil Nadu on Friday scrapped another pet scheme of the Karunanidhi regime by ending free colour TV distribution on which over Rs 3,600 crore was spent in the past five years.
Seeking to turn the tables on the opposition which is promising prohibition if voted to power, CM Jayalalithaa assured a dry law in Tamil Nadu in a staggered manner.
R Rajagopalan, who travelled through Tamil Nadu, says it will be an election of many firsts.
Dravida Munnetra Kazahagam on Monday said it has decided to file an appeal against Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa's acquittal in a wealth case by the Karnataka high court.
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.
Lashing out at his 'personal attacks' against party chief M Karunanidhi, the Dravidra Munnetra Kazagham on Monday demanded an unconditional apology from Press Council of India Chairman Markandey Katju and warned of legal action against him if he continued with his tirade against the leader.
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.
TTV Dhinakaran's call to the Congress to break up with the DMK and tie up with him, is aimed at consolidating the traditional anti-BJP votes. The stronger message is to all anti-BJP constituencies in the state, especially the minorities and traditionally aligned sections of the Dalit community, that he could be trusted to take forward an 'anti-Hindutva' agenda more seriously than anyone else, the DMK included, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Aam Aadmi Party on Tuesday claimed that additional "evidence" had emerged about 2G spectrum scam showing alleged roles of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi, his daughter Kanimozhi and a top police officer of Tamil Nadu.
Hardening its stand, key United Progressive Alliance ally Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam on Sunday slammed the Centre for its "lukewarm" response on the Sri Lankan Tamils issue and threatened to walk out of the ruling alliance if it failed to move amendments to the US-sponsored resolution at the UNHRC.
V P Duraisamy's exit will in no way upset the poll scene in western Tamil Nadu, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam President M Karunanidhi and other senior leaders prevailed over party Treasurer M K Stalin to reconsider his decision to quit party posts owning moral responsibility for its rout in Lok Sabha elections, with his brother and Madurai-based expelled leader M K Alagiri describing it as a "drama."
The DMK still wants to look elsewhere for excuses to its electoral debacle, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Amid threat to pull out Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam ministers and quit the United Progressive Alliance coalition on the Sri Lankan Tamils issue, party chief M Karunanidhi made a fresh demand insisting that Parliament adopt a resolution incorporating the two amendments he had suggested to the government to be moved on the US-backed resolution at the UNHRC.
Tamil Nadu's politics returns to being bi-polar, and that's a good thing, says B Srikumar.
Joining issue with Narendra Modi over criticism of his party besides ruling All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam, Dravida Munetra Kazhagam chief M Karunanidhi on Monday said that the Bharatiya Janata Party leader's comments will only earn him the wrath of people of Tamil Nadu but remained tightlipped on Rajnikanth's praise for the Gujarat chief minister.