'The AIADMK front comes second, and then the TVK.'
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami has announced a series of welfare measures, including free refrigerators for rice ration cardholders, if the party wins the 2026 Assembly election in Tamil Nadu.
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.
'What is worrying other parties is those 10-11 year olds who come for his meetings will cross 18 in the next election. And they will vote for him, and then his vote bank will double.' 'In that case, he will be a very serious player! This is the real scare for other political parties.'
A day after Dravida Munnettra Kazhagam supremo and Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M Karunanidhi stated that he viewed Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam supremo V Prabhakaran as a 'friend', Sri Lanka on Monday said that the Tamil Nadu chief minister was trying to exploit the issue for electoral gains. "Mr Karunanidhi is a Chanakya. He knows what to say and when -- not that he is not aware of Prabhakaran's attitude," Minister for Social Service Welfare Douglas Devananda said.
The recent conflict between India and Pakistan was among the issues figured during a phone call between Russian President Vladimir Putin and US President Donald Trump, according to a Kremlin aide.
Interacting with the Indian diaspora in Kuala Lumpur, Banerjee said, "We have been in talks with them (Pakistan) for decades, despite changes in various paradigms and governments. But one thing remains constant, the conflict with Pakistan."
All-party parliamentary delegations on Monday met with the leaders of several countries and highlighted India's resolve to combat terrorism, which they stressed must be eradicated in the interests of all humanity.
EPS' acceptance of Amit Shah's proposal for an electoral alliance with the BJP is being interpreted to mean how the AIADMK has signed up the NDA national leader as a junior partner. Not many have appreciated EPS for this strategic move that has now forced the BJP to play second fiddle to the AIADMK. This has meant that the BJP has buried its ambitions of capturing power in Tamil Nadu now, and is willing to wait until after the 2029 Lok Sabha polls, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
"Just because we invited the Central Minister, there's speculation that we have ties with the BJP. There's no need for us (the DMK) to have a secret pact with the BJP," Stalin said speaking after solemnising the marriage of Dileepan, son of DMK Thiruvottiyur MLA K P Shankar, with Vishali, in Chennai.
'The prime minister's advisers might have told him that going along with this AIADMK government will damage his image.'
Always interesting, DMK politics is going to get even more absorbing in the days to come, predicts Aditi Phadnis.
''He had given tools to fight all forms of homogenisation.'
Tamil Nadu chief secretary said that the request could not be sanctioned, owing to the legal issues at Marina Beach.
Rulers in New Delhi and their political aides in sensitive states like Tamil Nadu have to be doubly careful not to provoke a situation whose consequences may be much more than visible now to the naked eye, notes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'We shall not see the like of Kalaignar again, and our nation is poorer without his wise statesmanship, and his dedication to our country and our people,' she said.
Prime Minister Modi described the DMK chief as a prolific thinker and a deep-rooted mass leader who stood for regional aspiration and national progress.
Karunanidhi was convinced that using the 2G cases against the DMK and reopening the fodder case against Lalu Prasad Yadav were products of the Congress leadership's short-sightedness. A revealing excerpt from A S Panneerselvan's Karunanidhi: A Life.
The meeting between the two leaders lasted about 20 minutes.
If Kejriwal is arrested, it will take very little for Lieutenant Governor V K Saxena to summon a meeting of the assembly, direct it to elect a new leader of the House, and, if it doesn't, dissolve it and impose President's Rule, predicts Aditi Phadnis.
'The irresistible charm of Indian politics is it can always throw up surprises -- even when it looks as predictable as in Tamil Nadu,' discovers Shekhar Gupta.
Stoutly defending Sanatan Dharma, Tamil Nadu BJP President K Annamalai on Thursday dubbed the ruling DMK a casteist party that must be decimated, and questioned its track record on Dalit empowerment.
'They are fighting it out, but they have deeply traumatised; they are alive and they are carrying on in life.'
A controversy erupted on Tuesday after the opposition parties tagged a video of DMK leader A Raja purportedly showing him making remarks that India has never been a nation, but a subcontinent with diverse practices and cultures, prompting strong response from the BJP which described the comments as a call for 'balkanisation' of the the country and demanded for his arrest.
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.
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.
Tamil film actor Kamal Haasan said, "Mersal was certified. Don't re-censor it. Counter criticism with logical response. Don't silence critics. India will shine when it speaks."
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 Tamil Nadu chief minister may have opened a Pandora's Box on the religion front with the appointment of qualified non-Brahmin temple priests, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The actor took to Twitter to warn the Congress vice president "to not bullshit people on dynasty" and added that one has to earn people's respect through hard work.
Shrug off the yoke of the imperialism of Delhi. That is why the DMK manifesto offers what it offers: The promise that Tamil Nadu will, one day, become an independent republic, notes Aditi Phadnis.
'When an individual becomes authoritarian, you can overthrow the individual easily. 'When the system becomes authoritarian, whoever challenges the system will be called a criminal or an anti-national.'
'India Inc has been afraid to criticise the government of the day for many years now, and it is perhaps unfair to blame the current one alone,' says Shyamal Majumdar.
It is almost puzzling to see more old men and women hang around long enough for people to begin wondering 'why not retire?'
Rajini-Kamal duo cannot do harm to the AIADMK-led alliance in the state electorally, Jayakumar said.
But, Haasan said he one could not rule out an electoral alliance between the two.
Why did Kamal Haasan name the leaders he did?
'Your strike rate is very important when it comes to seat-sharing.'
Subramanian Swamy stole the BJP thunder in Tamil Nadu by meeting DMDK's Vijaykanth in Chennai, and his efforts seem to have paid off, at least in the interim, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Rahul attacked Modi and BJP, alleging that 'politics of divide and polarisation is radicalising people in India'.
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