The Indian government and opposition parties are set for a showdown in Parliament over a Constitution amendment bill concerning the implementation of the women's quota law and the delimitation exercise. The Opposition is concerned about the potential impact of delimitation on the political representation of southern states.
Already, there is a feeling even within the BJP's AIADMK ally that the BJP is overdoing things on the ED/I-T front, as corruption is not an election issue in the state -- as long as the people are otherwise not excessively unhappy with the governing party, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister Udhayanidhi Stalin on Friday called Sanskrit 'a dead language', drawing a sharp response from the Bharatiya Janata Party, which said leaders must be more responsible while making remarks.
S A Chandrasekhar, father of actor-politician Vijay, has appealed to the Congress party to form an alliance with his son's party, TVK, in the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections.
The government has released a set of FAQs to address concerns and clarify the details surrounding the Women's Reservation Bill, which aims to provide 33 per cent quota for women in legislatures.
R Rajagopalan predicts that Tamil Nadu won't have single party rule for the first time in its history.
In a swift political counter-offensive, the Bharatiya Janata Party and its National Democratic Alliance (NDA) partners have announced a massive, nationwide protest campaign targeting the Opposition.
Pattali Makkal Katchi founder S Ramadoss said that Prime Minister Narendra Modi should meet the expectations of the people that prices will go down if he took over and 'it is the duty of the new government to do that.'
Vijay said the 2026 assembly election carried a new environment that had never seen before.
'He is not accessible even to his family, his wife or his mother or his father. No one.' 'He has created a barrier so that nobody can go and talk to him.' 'This kind of a mentality is a big question mark in politics.'
For a party that has adopted the successful social re-engineering model from Gujarat, Rajasthan and across the rest of the 'Hindi belt' over the past decades, Tamil Nadu continues to remain a tricky customer, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Congress party has accused the government of scheduling a 'special session' to pass bills related to women's quota and delimitation with the intention of gaining political advantage in the upcoming West Bengal and Tamil Nadu elections, calling it a violation of the model code of conduct.
Amid criticism and protests against the government over allegations that Cauvery water was being released from Krishnaraja Sagar (KRS) dam to Tamil Nadu, he clarified that the discharge was meant for Bengaluru, and not for the neighbouring state.
M K Alagiri, the disgruntled son of Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam patriarch M Karunanidhi, has reached out to the Bharatiya Janata Party with an offer of support in the forthcoming Lok Sabha polls.
Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla will stay away from House proceedings until a no-confidence motion against him is resolved. This follows a no-confidence notice submitted by Congress, alleging partisan conduct.
The BJP has nominated Sanjay Bhatia, its former MP from Karnal, for the upcoming Rajya Sabha poll from Haryana. This decision comes as two Rajya Sabha seats in Haryana are set to fall vacant, prompting elections scheduled for March 16.
Voters in Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry are voting in crucial assembly elections.
The DMK has announced its candidates for the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, setting the stage for key battles with the AIADMK and other parties.
'They have been imposing Hindi on Tamil Nadu,' says DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai.
Raja said though the icon of the Dravidian movement, Thanthai Periyar stood for an independent Tamil Nadu, the DMK moved away from it.
Words and actions like those of R N Ravi and a vocal section of the state BJP have only added to Tamil fears and suspicions, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
The extent of doubts over the fairness of this election can be assessed by juxtaposing two figures: Total votes polled by the two principal parties and the number of people who were disallowed from voting this time, observes Nilanjan Mukhopadhyay.
Why is the BJP playing 'competitive politics' where there is scope or room for none? The release of 5 Indian fishermen on death row in Sri Lanka was a victory for India's quiet diplomacy of long years in the matter -- and not for loud politics by parties in the country.
Vijayakanth's DMDK may play a key role as Tamil Nadu's political parties scramble for allies to capture the state's 40 Lok Sabha seats.
As of now, there is nothing to suggest that the 'Michaelpatti episode' has the potential to polarise Dravidian Tamil Nadu on religious lines, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
''Women are coming into public spaces in larger numbers than ever before. They are educated, capable, opinionated, and determined.' 'But the more women push for access to public space, the harder they are pushed back -- through attacks like this, through discrimination, through the glass ceiling, through the deliberate denial of recognition.'
'Kamal Haasan always appeared to be quick to strike, but afraid to wound.' 'What he is offering the people of Tamil Nadu is not clear, but whatever it is, it will be a fresh element in the state's politics,' says Aditi Phadnis.
The BJP's national leadership seems to have convinced itself that with a weakened, post-Jaya AIADMK for company, they should be able to strike roots before long, and start by winning about 10-15 Lok Sabha seats in 2019, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
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.
The announced election schedule for five assemblies reveals fewer phases, a condensed voting period, longer gaps between polling days, and a delayed counting process compared to previous elections.
Senior DMK leader TKS Elangovan accused the BJP of nominating Maharashtra Governor CP Radhakrishnan for Vice President for electoral gains in Tamil Nadu. AIADMK's Edappadi K Palaniswami urged support for Radhakrishnan, while other leaders offered mixed reactions.
Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan, with strong roots in the RSS and BJP, has been elected as the 15th Vice President of India. His rich political and administrative experience will be valuable as the Chairperson of the Rajya Sabha.
'It would be interesting to see how Yogi Adityanath is received in Tamil Nadu, where he is due to end his Ram Rajya Rath Yatra in Rameswaram on March 23.'
Kerala BJP president Rajeev Chandrasekhar criticizes the state government for the water crisis in Thiruvananthapuram ahead of the Attukal Pongala festival, alleging negligence and failure to utilize funds. He also addressed the Gulf conflict and political alliances in the state.
There is a deep-seated sense of rejection that the new generation Tamil youth have felt for a decade and more now, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
'"Pakistan will come and bite you" doesn't work here.'
Pon Radhakrishnan also stated that Naxals, Maoists and Muslim extremists may have intruded into some of the media houses too.
Three people have been arrested in Chennai in connection with the murder of a migrant worker from Bihar, his wife, and their two-year-old son. The investigation revealed a sexual assault and subsequent killings.
Narendra Modi's meeting with J Jayalalithaa in Chennai has set the rumour mills abuzz. Will the Tamil Nadu chief minister ally with the BJP ahead of the 2016 polls, asks N Sathiya Moorthy.
'What we see here is puppetry. The string is with the BJP.' 'All the puppets here are dancing to the direction the BJP pulls the strings.'
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