In apparent signs of thaw after years of bickering stemming out of internal feud in the AIADMK in the past, party chief Edappadi K Palaniswami welcomed Dhinakaran back in to the National Democratic Alliance. The AMMK founder reciprocated with a "heartfelt thanks," yet admitting there was "sibling rivalry" with AIADMK, the party he was once associated with.
Virtually friendless in Tamil Nadu, Congress on Monday said it would be going it alone in the state in the upcoming Lok Sabha polls.
Voters in Kerala, Assam, and Puducherry are voting in crucial assembly elections.
R Rajagopalan predicts that Tamil Nadu won't have single party rule for the first time in its history.
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.
Assuring a social justice-driven regime if voted to power, Vijay, addressing a rally at Seelanaickenpatti, in Salem, dramatically hit back at those who mocked at him by alleging that he merely stayed back at home, though claiming to have entered politics.
The AIADMK is convinced that the BJP will remain an electoral burden for a long time to come, beginning the Lok Sabha polls next year, reveals N Sathiya Moorthy.
The BJP has made significant gains in the Kerala Assembly elections, securing three seats and marking a potential breakthrough in a state where it has traditionally struggled.
What is missing in the BJP's armour is dominance over 50 percent of the electorate: Women. And this is a gamble Modi-Shah have indicated that they are willing to take, explains Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
Unless controlled and contained, given the untested belief that the north Indian labour support and follow the Hindutva kind of political ideology, there is a potential in terms of ideological clashes with their Dravidian brethren in the local neighbourhoods, and it all escalating into violence, especially during election time, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy.
Throughout Parasakthi, Sivakarthikeyan mentions he is not against Hindi but the imposition of Hindi, notes A Ganesh Nadar.
West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has accused the central government of pressuring the outgoing Governor C V Ananda Bose to resign and alleged that his replacement, R N Ravi, is a BJP cadre.
Former Union minister GK Vasan's decision to revolt and float a separate outfit in Tamil Nadu serves as a deadly blow to the Grand Old Party, which is already struggling, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Election Commission will examine a complaint filed by opposition parties alleging that Prime Minister Narendra Modi's address to the nation violated the Model Code of Conduct for elections.
Indications are that the DMK combine will win more seats than the AIADMK and BJP, but is facing a tough fight in about half a dozen from the rest, predicts N Sathiya Moorthy of the electoral contest in Tamil Nadu.
The Election Commission has allotted the 'whistle' symbol to actor Vijay's political party, Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK), for the upcoming 2026 Assembly elections. Party workers are enthusiastically promoting the symbol across Tamil Nadu.
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.
While interacting with students of St Joseph's Matriculation Higher Secondary School in Mulagumoodubn, Tamil Nadu, Rahul Gandhi not only shook a leg with the students but also did push-ups and performed some Aikido martial arts. Rahul even went on to do a one-hand push-up leading to a loud cheer out from the students.
'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.
After placing the party on the revival path in Uttar Pradesh, Congress general secretary Rahul Gandhi's next stop seems to be Tamil Nadu where he is making efforts to give a new lease of life to the local base by injecting 'youth power'.
Nine migrant workers died after an under-construction building collapsed at the Ennore thermal power station in Chennai. Authorities have responded, and compensation has been announced for the families of the deceased.
Launching his "Vetri Kodi Eandhi Tamizhagam Velvom" (Will Win Tamil Nadu Carrying the flag of victory) campaign from Suseendiram in this district, Shah said he was confident that a coalition government of the NDA will come to power in the state after the April 6 assembly polls.
Tamil Nadu is the celebrated home of the 'social justice' movement in the country, yet caste differences and violence has only been increasing in numbers and becoming more brutal in recent years, observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
AICC leader Pawan Khera has accused the CPI(M) and BJP of having a tacit understanding in the Kerala Assembly elections, alleging that both parties are deliberately fielding weak candidates to help each other. Khera expressed confidence in the Congress-led UDF's victory due to strong anti-incumbency sentiment.
Sonia Gandhi criticises the government's proposed delimitation, claiming it's a politically motivated move to delay the caste census and gain an unfair advantage, rather than genuinely promoting women's reservation.
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.
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.
The BJP and the Opposition have engaged in a war of words over the implementation of the women's reservation bill, which aims to reserve seats for women in legislatures. The bill was defeated in the Lower House, leading to accusations and counter-accusations between the parties.
Senior Congress functionary Praveen Chakravarty has questioned the DMK's flagship women's assistance scheme, suggesting it's superstitious to believe it alone will ensure electoral success, citing examples of similar schemes failing to secure victories for other parties.
The Shiv Sena-UBT is openly questioning the Congress party's leadership within the INDIA bloc.
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.
'People are understanding it and taking it in the right way. If they watch the film completely, they will understand.'
Prime Minister Narendra Modi has accused opposition parties of obstructing the passage of the women's reservation bill in Parliament, alleging they have crushed the dreams of women and prioritised selfish politics over national progress.
The Rajya Sabha elections saw several candidates elected unopposed, including Sharad Pawar and Ramdas Athawale, while Bihar, Odisha, and Haryana prepare for contested elections.
Top Congress leaders are questioning whether the Election Commission's announced schedule for the Assembly polls unduly benefits the BJP, citing concerns over the timing and structuring of election phases.
The BJP continuing to look at the Dravidian polity through the religious prism has not worked in Tamil Nadu whereas it has yielded political and electoral results across much of the rest of the country, 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.'
Kanyakumari is the tip of India and will convey the symbol that from the tip of India, the Congress is on its way up.
The decision toremit the sentence of life imprisonment of all the seven convicts in the Rajiv Gandhi assassination case rocked Lok Sabha.
'Sometimes we use political pressure and sometimes political acumen to get what we want.'
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