Vijay's TVK is poised to win its debut Assembly polls in Tamil Nadu, drawing parallels to Arvind Kejriwal's AAP's rise in Delhi. Both parties capitalised on public disenchantment with established political structures, promising change and fighting corruption.
Tamil Nadu Minister S Keerthana was unable to take her oath of office as an MLA in the State Assembly because she did not present her Certificate of Election, a necessary document for the oath-taking process.
The DMK leads the multi-party Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) in Tamil Nadu and the constituents include the Congress and the Left parties.
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.
'Looking at the situation purely on its Constitutional merits, the governor's conduct is defensible.' 'He is saying: You do not have a majority, so prove it. That is not an unreasonable position even if the timing and the political context make it deeply controversial.'
TVK chief Vijay has arrived at the Lok Bhavan to meet Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, a day after he staked claim to form the government with the support of the Congress party.
AIADMK MLA Leemarose Martin claims that Edappadi K Palaniswami is in talks to support actor Vijay's TVK to form a stable government in Tamil Nadu. TVK, despite a strong debut, needs additional support to secure a majority.
'...especially pressure on the rupee, the current account deficit, and foreign exchange outflows.' 'The key question over the next several months is whether the government can prevent external turbulence from feeding into domestic economic pessimism.'
Unlike films that end with the underdog becoming winner and being sworn in at a public ceremony, Vijay's trial by fire is only about to begin, predicts Saisuresh Sivaswamy.
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.
'Vijay entered politics at a much better age compared to Rajnikanth and Kamal Haasan. His fans are young and he has at least 2-3 decades ahead of him.'
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.
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.
By asking Vijay to produce letters of majority support before inviting him to form the government, the governor risks overstepping established Constitutional principles, notes Harishchandra.
Actor Vijay's political party, TVK, has significantly impacted the Tamil Nadu political landscape in its debut election, challenging established political norms and achieving notable success.
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.
Chief Minister C Joseph Vijay-led TVK government successfully won the trust vote in the Tamil Nadu assembly, securing 144 votes in favour, with support from the Congress, VCK, and an AIADMK rebel faction.
Union Home Minister Amit Shah accuses the West Bengal government of openly facilitating infiltration, defends the Special Intensive Revision of voter lists, and asserts BJP's prospects in upcoming elections.
Rediff Labs analysed the past performance of the parties to develop this Sentiment Meter for the 2016 Tamil Nadu election.
Tamilaga Vazhvurimai Katchi (TVK) has announced its departure from the DMK-led Secular Progressive Alliance (SPA) ahead of the Tamil Nadu Assembly elections, citing the DMK's 'big brother' attitude and unmet demands.
'Vijay did not defeat Dravidian politics from outside. He entered the Dravidian field and claimed ownership of it. 'His argument was not that the room should be destroyed. It was that the present occupants no longer deserved to remain in it.'
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.
'The last four years was not Dravidian rule, it was BJP rule by proxy.'
DMK President M K Stalin has alleged that the ruling TVK won the April 23 Assembly polls by influencing people through social media, without doing any field work. He said social media was used to influence family members through children and that the DMK has realised this and will be very careful from now on. Stalin also mentioned that the DMK has set up a committee to tour all the 234 constituencies in the state to assess the ground situation and find out the reasons for the debacle.
In a one-horse race, ruling All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam led by Jayalalithaa on Friday inflicted a crushing defeat on its arch-rival DMK, Congress and BJP-led six-party alliance, winning 4 seats and establishing unassailable leads in 33 out of the 39 Lok Sabha seats in Tamil Nadu.
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.
Congress leader Shashi Tharoor criticised the proposal to increase the Lok Sabha's strength to 850, while BJP leaders defended delimitation as a democratic necessity at the Stanford India Conference 2026.
With election campaign ending in Tamil Nadu before it goes to polls on Thursday, N Sathiya Moorthy lists a few questions uppermost in the minds of voters.
Despite recent gains, the BJP-led NDA is unlikely to achieve a two-thirds majority in the Rajya Sabha in the near future, highlighting the challenges in passing key legislation requiring constitutional amendments.
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.
'With the deaths of Jayalalithaa and Karunanidhi, the BJP and Congress thought that they had a chance.' 'They have conceded that power is with the Dravidian parties.'
'They have been imposing Hindi on Tamil Nadu,' says DMK spokesperson Saravanan Annadurai.
The Bharatiya Janata Party on Thursday announced the formation of a seven-party rainbow alliance for the April 24 Lok Sabha polls in Tamil Nadu, in its first-ever such electoral venture in the state where the turf has been largely dominated by Dravida Munetra Kazhagam and All India Anna Dravida Munetra Kazhagam.
Governor Banwarilal Purohit on Wednesday appointed Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam president M K Stalin as Tamil Nadu Chief Minister and invited him to form the government after he staked claim, submitting a letter on his election as legislature party leader.
'98 lakhs in Bengal, 97 lakhs in Tamil Nadu, 2.83 crores in Uttar Pradesh.'
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.
Who are the special fathers of these famous Indians? The paternal figures responsible for putting them on the right path and helping them find greatness.
The DMK feels its genuine gestures have had no bearing on the governor's politico-administrative conduct, which is 'more political and politicised than administrative and Constitutional', observes N Sathiya Moorthy.
A Ganesh Nadar and Saisuresh Sivaswamy, on the campaign trail with H Vasanthakumar, the Congress's businessman candidate in Tamil Nadu.
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.
