(This article was first published in July 2018) (The first part of the series looked at why the one nation, one poll idea is a ploy by NDA government to come back to power; the second looked at the legal complications in bringing this about; this article deals with the stand of TN parties) The...
(This article was first published in July 2018) The first part of the article dealt with how the one nation, one poll proposal may be help BJP in the short-term by giving it an advantage in the next Lok Sabha polls. The question is whether it has the intention or the stomach to really carry it...
(This article was first published in July 2018) The first thing that must be understood about the move to have simultaneous elections to the Lok Sabha and the state Assemblies is that it is aimed at establishing single party rule throughout the country, including in the States. Much as the BJP...
The Badri Seshadri arrest has to be seen in a broader context. Leftists and liberals stand for free speech, the right to criticize. They uphold equality, dignity for all, and so on. They are all for change. Rightwingers venerate what is timeworn and sacred in society. They stand for strong...
Tamil Nadu Governor Ravi has waded into the Senthil Balaji controversy by first denying the shifting of portfolios and later by saying that Senthil Balaji should not stay in the Ministry. The governor is no stranger to controversy and has riled the DMK government in more ways than one. He...
Congratulating the Congress on its landslide victory in the Karnataka Assembly elections, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister M.K. Stalin has noted, “They have taught a fitting lesson to the BJP for its vindictive politics, establishing their Kannadiga legacy and pride. The BJP has totally been removed...
Chief Minister M K Stalin has taken away the finance portfolio from Palanivel Thiagarajan and given it to Thangam Thennarasu. PTR will handle IT and he has thanked chief minister M K Stalin for the move. Earlier Stalin had dismissed the PTR tapes as cheap politics. Palanivel Thiagarajan has...
This column had made the point that Governor R N Ravi was not just an administrative choke point for the government but was seeking to amplify the nationalist narrative as a counter to Dravidian ideology and the DMK. Governor R N Ravi was not just a tough customer who stalled government work...
A Facebook post that came up recently featured a photo of film star Rajinikanth standing next to a shorter, scraggy looking man – purportedly a daily wage worker. The accompanying comment said both came from up north for survival and they should know their place and behave. If this is how at...
Tamil Nadu Governor R N Ravi’s open dislike of the words ‘Tamil Nadu’ and replacing it with ‘Thamizhagam’ has led to a political storm in the state. The ruling DMK and its allies are of course opposed to it, but so is the opposition AIADMK. The party declared it would stand by the name Tamil...
