The Election Commission has a fight on its hand as candidates use ingenious methods to smuggle in money to Voters.
AIADMK coordinator and Tamil Nadu Deputy Chief Minister O Panneerselvam was closeted with a section of leaders on Tuesday, skipping a meeting chaired by Chief Minister K Palaniswami on Covid-19, a day after the two crossed swords over who should lead the party in the 2021 assembly elections.
'The prime minister took a meeting recently and he asked for suggestions and ideas for a plan till 2047.'
Nominated as the National Democratic Alliance candidate for the Vice President election, Bharatioya Janata Party leader Jaswant Singh on Monday said he would reach out to the non-NDA parties including United Progressive Alliance partner Trinamool Congress for their support.
Tamil nadu Chief Minister and All India Dravida Munetra Kazhagam supremo J Jayalalithaa on Monday sacked three ministers and six district heads in the backdrop of her party's defeat in three Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu and Puducherry.
What is 'MGR' doing in Thiruvananthpuram, seeking votes?
Come May 16, the BJP-led National Democratic Alliance will have more seats from Tamil Nadu and Andhra Pradesh than any formation mustered by the Congress, notes T V R Shenoy.
Springing a surprise, Vijayakanth-led Desiya Murpokku Dravida Kazhagam on Wednesday struck an alliance with the four-party People's Welfare Front for the May 16 Assembly elections in Tamil Nadu with the actor-turned-politician being declared as the chief ministerial candidate of the alliance.
Complaints were received by the Commission on possibilities of inducement of electors by distributing cash and gifts in innovative forms like tokens, prepaid phone recharge coupons, newspaper subscription, milk tokens.
Dinakaran, who was expelled from the AIADMK in 2011, was re-inducted into the party last month by Sasikala after he expressed regret for his alleged anti-party activities.
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.
Sporadic violence on Monday marred the end of campaign for assembly polls in Kerala leaving a minister injured while curtains came down on electioneering in neighbouring Tamil Nadu and Puducherry for the single-phase elections on April 13.
The Modi juggernaut is all set to paint the five south Indian states in saffron colours, writes R Rajagopalan.
The RK Nagar bypoll result is a danger signal to the AIADMK government in Tamil Nadu, says R Rajagopalan.
The appointments of five governors, including for Arunachal Pradesh and Meghalaya, and Lt Governor of Andaman and Nicobar Islands by President Ram Nath Kovind were announced on Saturday.
The PM name is to be decided only after the Lok Sabha results, a top opposition leader said.
'Rajinikanth has fans in every political party. They will not change their mind because the BJP prints posters of him with Modi.'
The last leg of poll campaign saw many national leaders canvassing for their parties.
The cash was neatly packed in 94 packets and envelops on which the ward number, number of voters and the amount of Rs 300 per voter was written.
Facing flak over the grim power situation in the state, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister J Jayalalithaa on Wednesday assured that the scenario would improve from June with the completion of various projects and a total capacity addition of 1950 mw. "Power generation is being given high priority and I am giving special focus to this," she said at an election rally in support of party candidate S Muthuselvi for the March 18 by-poll to Sankarankoil assembly constituency.
The elections for five assemblies are over and the results are out. As the new governments get ready to take their place and commence their five year term, Vicky Nanjappa compiles a report on nature of the MLAs these governments will have.
'Sasikala definitely has an emotional advantage over the others, but there are very seasoned politicians with a strong support base.' 'For the time being, they may toe her line.'
Jayalalithaa will be contesting the Andipatti seat, the traditional stronghold of the party in the South, for the second consecutive time.
The Congress's loss in the three states in the North-East, a region it had dominated for decades, shows there is a lot left to do to reclaim its political turf despite the Bharat Jodo Yatra which it had touted as a successful experiment in mass public outreach.
The Jaya-Jaitley meeting poses more questions than answers -- and not just for the Tamil Nadu BJP.
In a move that is bound to generate controversy, the election expenditure for both Parliamentary and assembly constituencies is likely to jump by one-and-a-half times before the coming Lok Sabha polls. Anita Katyal reports
A Ganesh Nadar's tales from the campaign trail.
The alliance would announce a coordination committee, which could be of 11 members from principal opposition parties.
Opposition presidential candidate Yashwant Sinha on Monday filed his nomination papers for the July 18 election, with a host of leaders including Rahul Gandhi, Sharad Pawar, Akhilesh Yadav and Farooq Abdullah accompanying him.
'I see the queen bee kind of syndrome.' 'When they know that there is a queen bee, the bees will hang around her for some time and then fly away.' 'I won't be surprised if somebody else takes the place of the queen bee.'
The by-elections to 18 assembly constituencies will decide if the ruling AIADMK remains in power or not.
Candidates or their agents who have received both the doses of Covid-19 vaccine can also enter the counting hall on May 2 when votes for Assam, West Bengal, Kerala, Puducherry and Tamil Nadu will be counted, according to the guidelines issued on Wednesday.
'After a month of working on the new machine, I realised that the black glass on the VVPAT lets the programmer manipulate not just the electronic system, but the paper vote too.' 'And it will not be detected even during the mock poll or the actual voting because of the black glass.'
Amid rising coronavirus cases, the Election Commission on Friday flagged instances of star campaigners and political leaders not wearing masks while campaigning, and asked them to follow in all seriousness the guidelines on COVID-appropriate behaviour issued by it last year.
The BJP's hobnobbing with M K Alagiri and ally Vaiko's controversial demands has the potential to rock the BJP's boat in Tamil Nadu, says N Sathiya Moorthy.
The Delhi high court on Thursday sought response of the Centre and the Election Commission on a plea seeking to ensure that masks are worn mandatorily by everyone involved in poll campaigns during the ongoing elections in various states and union territories.
On Monday, Shashi Tharoor met Sonia Gandhi and expressed his intention to contest the upcoming AICC chief polls.
What the INDIA alliance needs is neither a counter to Modi's tall personality and undiminished charisma nor a counter-narrative to his Hindutva agenda, now centred on the Ayodhya temple consecration on January 22, argues N Sathiya Moorthy.
'More than losing Bengal, the worry for their national leadership is the current crisis.' 'If people perceive that the government does not do enough, then there's trouble.'
© 2026 Rediff.com - Advertise with us - Disclaimer - Privacy Policy - Sitemap - Feedback - About us - Terms of use - Grievances