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.
The Madras high court's Madurai division bench on Tuesday upheld a single judge's order allowing lighting of a lamp on what is claimed as 'deepathoon' on the Thirupparankundram hill in Tamil Nadu.
P Balakrishna Reddy was sentenced Reddy to three years rigorous imprisonment in a two-decade old riot case related to a protest against illicit liquor in Hosur.
By naming a sworn swayamsevak for vice president, the Modi-Shah duo have sent out a clear and positive message to Nagpur, where the RSS headquarters is located, explains N Sathiya Moorthy.
Senior AIADMK leader M Thambidurai has asserted that there will be no coalition government in Tamil Nadu in 2026, with party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami forming a government "alone." He said this in response to reporters' queries on the possibility of a coalition government if the NDA wins the 2026 Assembly election. Thambidurai stated that Tamil Nadu has never had a coalition government, citing the examples of Congress leaders C Rajagopalachari and K Kamaraj, as well as Dravidian stalwarts M G Ramachandran and M Karunanidhi. He further clarified that Palaniswami's previous statement regarding a coalition government was misinterpreted by the media.
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.
Gehlot had on Wednesday refused to deliver the address to the Karnataka legislature, leading to a stalemate over the fate of the customary speech that outlines the government's policies.
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.
Several opposition MPs have submitted a notice to the Lok Sabha Speaker to move a motion for the removal of Madras High Court Judge G R Swaminathan over his order regarding a temple lamp.
Voters in Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry are voting in crucial assembly elections.
Maharashtra heads to the polls for 29 municipal corporations, with Mumbai's BMC election taking center stage as the BJP-led Mahayuti faces off against the Thackeray front. Key issues include promises for women, pollution control, and the city's financial health.
Actor-politician Vijay is reportedly considering contesting from either Velachery or Virugambakkam constituencies in Chennai for the upcoming Assembly election in Tamil Nadu, according to sources within his party, TVK.
Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M K Stalin on Sunday admitted that 'as of now, some assurances such as getting NEET scrapped', could not be fulfilled.
While the DMK depends on a 'silver sieve' of welfare schemes to stay in power, its support is slowly draining away under the weight of poor governance, corruption, and voters who are no longer satisfied with benefits alone and now want basic administration to work, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The four-km distance from the Tiruchi airport to the venue of the meeting has 10 cops deployed every 100 metres. Five DIGs and 12 SPs have been posted along with 5000 policemen to oversee the security arrangements. A review meeting was conducted on Tuesday by the assistant DGP (law and order) T K Rajendran to go through the arrangements minutely, and on Wednesday there was a dry run from the airport to the venue.
Top leaders of opposition parties including Congress' Rahul Gandhi and Mallikarjun Kharge, TMC's Mamata Banerjee and Abhishek Banerjee, Samajwadi Party chief Akhilesh Yadav, Tejashwi Yadav of Rashtriya Janata Dal and Uddhav Thackeray of Shiv Sena-Uddhav Balasaheb Thackeray, besides Left leaders and those from smaller parties, are likely to attend the meeting at the Constitution Club in the national capital.
The Rajya Sabha elections saw several candidates elected unopposed, including Sharad Pawar and Ramdas Athawale, while Bihar, Odisha, and Haryana prepare for contested elections.
Amit Shah seemingly encouraging AIADMK dissident Sengottaiyan after party boss Edappadi K Palaniswami had removed his one-time mentor from all party posts has not gone down well with party cadres. They are now ready to buy Team EPS' theory that the BJP and Amit Shah are out to liquidate the AIADMK, points out N Sathiya Moorthy.
23 political parties of the INDIA bloc will meet on Monday to redraw their strategy to take on the BJP and iron out differences amid changed power dynamics after the defeat of regional anchors TMC and DMK in the recent assembly polls.
The National Democratic Alliance (NDA) has nominated Maharashta Governor Chandrapuram Ponnusamy Radhakrishnan as their candidate for Vice-President of India. The announcement was made by BJP President J P Nadda, highlighting Radhakrishnan's extensive public service and cross-party respect.
She had joined the BJP inspired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and former state chief K Annamalai, whom she believed had a clear vision of "no religion, no caste and pure hard work."
Tamil Nadu has around 30 per cent or more of 'swing voters', and it is this segment that will swing the pre-poll alliance decision, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The last time Tamil Nadu seriously voted on pre-poll promises was in faraway 1967.
The Shiv Sena-UBT is openly questioning the Congress party's leadership within the INDIA bloc.
In Tamil Nadu, the alternative to one Dravidian party has been another, and for one actor-politician CM, there is another. Their initial popularity may owe to their filmi charisma, but their continued acceptance owed to their government's policies and programmes targeting the poor and the needy in the state, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
MNS president Raj Thackeray questions the fuel consumption during recent election campaigns, asking if austerity measures are only meant for the common people.
The Gandhis have served both the Congress and India. But it has been 12 years since the 2014 verdict, and the returns have been diminishing. It is time for them to step aside, let the party find its own footing, and allow someone else to make the hard calls. That is what the Congress needs. And frankly, it is what India needs too, points out Harishchandra.
BJP Tamil Nadu president K Annamalai and many party functionaries were detained by police in Chennai on Monday ahead of a protest against alleged irregularities in state-run liquor retailer TASMAC. The BJP had planned to picket the TASMAC headquarters over alleged Rs 1,000 crore irregularities, as claimed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED). Annamalai was detained near his house along with his supporters, and senior party leaders including Tamilisai Soundararajan were placed "under house arrest" by the police. The ED had earlier said it found "multiple irregularities" in TASMAC operations, including "manipulation" in tender processes and "unaccounted" cash transactions worth Rs 1,000 crore.
The 'Raj Bhavan/Nakkeeran Gopal case', in which editor S Gopal was arrested in the morning and set free by the court in the afternoon, is not the first one where the Tamil Nadu's once-reputed police force is seen as faltering in the eye of the law, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan has condemned the attack on Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials following a search at his rented residence, calling it a serious offence. He also defended the ED's investigation into financial dealings involving his daughter's firm.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Friday said that the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Bharatiya Janata Party and all the alliance parties will contest the upcoming Vidhan Sabha elections in Tamil Nadu together under the National Democratic Alliance. The significant political development comes ahead of the TN Assembly election to be held in 2026,
A massive swing of 21.3 per cent in vote share propelled the ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam to coast to a resounding victory in 37 of the 39 seats leaving miles behind rivals including the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam, Congress, Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam and the Bharatiya Janata Party in the Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu.
'Now if you break the party under the 10th Schedule you have to join another party.' 'You cannot join the NDA as it is not a party. You can only join another party, and that is the BJP.' 'So the question to ask is that these so-called 20 TMC Lok Sabha MPs who are parting ways with the TMC, are they ready to join the BJP and accept Narendra Modi as their leader?'
The Tamil Nadu unit of the Bharatiya Janata Patty on Wednesday submitted a memorandum to Governor R N Ravi seeking action over what it claimed "benami" links to ruling DMK Ministers, legislators and MPs and "three scams" to the tune of about Rs 5,600 crore.
Election Commission's Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of voters' list commenced in nine states and three Union territories on Tuesday, amid objections from several parties with Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee leading the anti-SIR offensive in West Bengal with a rally in Kolkata and alleging 'silent, invisible rigging' through the exercise.
The CBI took over the case from an SIT following a Supreme Court order, and the investigating agency has been gathering evidence relating to the stampede that occurred during a political meeting addressed by Vijay on September 27 in Karur, Tamil Nadu. The incident had left 41 dead and more than 60 injured.
AIADMK general secretary Edappadi K Palaniswami has asserted that alliances are formed only at the time of elections and declined to categorically say if his party would align with the BJP for the 2026 Assembly polls. Palaniswami met with Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Tuesday and brought to his attention several issues faced by Tamil Nadu, including the need for funds release, the implementation of the Godavari-Cauvery river linking plan, and a probe into the "TASMAC scam." He said that while the party would decide on an alliance at the time of the election, he did not rule out a tie-up with the BJP.
Kerala's Chief Minister-designate, V D Satheesan, has announced his new ministerial team, emphasising social and regional balance within the coalition. Senior leaders like Ramesh Chennithala and K Muraleedharan are set to be inducted, with Thiruvanchoor Radhakrishnan nominated as Speaker.
Nitin Nabin, a five-time Bihar MLA, has been elected unopposed as the BJP national president, becoming the youngest person to hold the position. His appointment signals a generational shift in the party's leadership as it prepares for key state elections.
The assembly polls in the state have shown that the GenNext voters want change -- not necessarily of leaderships but of their behaviour, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
