In most states including in formerly Left-ruled West Bengal, Hindutva as a political ideology has struck roots. In Tamil Nadu, however, the same success has been hard to achieve for the BJP despite campaigns such as the Vel Yatra undertaken before Assembly...
Among the mega stars of Tamil cinema, actor Rajnikanth has a primary place. For the last four decades, he has been acting as one of the top heroes, singing duets with young actresses and delivering punch dialogue. On most of the occasions, his films have been money...
A century is a long time in politics. The communal GO which provided representation for all communities in government jobs was issued exactly a hundred years ago and it had a big impact on politics and society. This GO enabled the empowerment of non-Brahmins in...
”Paar meethu naan saagathiruppane kaanbeer” (I will never die), declared Tamil poet Bharathi. As if endorsing his words, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin has announced 14 new schemes to commemorate the poet’s death centenary. The announcements include the...
The appointment of former Deputy National Security Adviser (DNSA) Ravindra Narayana Ravi as Tamil Nadu Governor has sparked sharp criticism from several quarters including some of the political leaders allied to the DMK and there are valid reasons behind the...
In a dramatic turn of events, the President of India has appointed Ravindra Narayana Ravi, the serving Governor of Nagaland, as the new Governor of Tamil Nadu on Friday. He replaced Banwarilal Purohoit, who has been made the Governor of Punjab. Interestingly, this...
The writer of the book, Thalaivi, upon which the Kangana-starrer is based is now all praise for the makers of the film. Having criticized them earlier for taking too many dramatic licenses, Ajayan Bala says he has been intimately involved in the story discussions...
Professionally, I wear two hats. I make my living largely from marine engineering but pursue journalism for passion. On my recent ship, there were two Malayali apprentice engineers: Prakash Muralidharan and Mohammed Nazar. Prakash was a Sanghi. His uncle was in the...
Among those who sit in the front row of the Tamil Nadu Assembly are four DMK ministers who crossed over from the AIADMK. HR & CE minister PK Sekar Babu is one. A former loyalist of former chief minister Jayalalithaa who presided over his wedding, Sekar Babu...
Not many are aware of a dramatic shift in the stand of the DMK regarding conduct of bypolls due in Tamil Nadu. DMK president M K Stalin’s statement in this regard has come as a surprise. W When the Tiruvarur bypoll, scheduled for January 28, was put off by the...
Rangaraj | Jan 23, 2019
The Election Commission was once respected as a constitutional, neutral body, with at least some pretence to be fair and apolitical. However, its actions relating to Tamil Nadu continue to raise eyebrows. Right from the time the EC took its time to hold the RK...
Rangaraj | Jan 7, 2019
The PMK’s endorsement of the Governor’s address to the State Assembly on January 2 (which is actually a text prepared by the cabinet of the AIADMK government, in effect CM Edappadi Palaniswami’s speech) has sent signals of a renewal of ties between the two parties,...
Rangaraj | Jan 4, 2019
While everyone in Tamil Nadu is looking forward to the verdict in the Tiruvarur by-election on January 31, the result may not reflect the real strengths of the major parties in Tamil Nadu, for various reasons. For long, bypolls have seen massive misuse of official...
Rangaraj | Jan 3, 2019
A beleaguered AIADMK, which originally wanted to contest the 2019 Lok Sabha polls with only a few minor allies, and not align with the BJP, has succumbed to the pressure mounted by the saffron party and agreed to an alliance for the LS elections. The AIADMK wanted...
Rangaraj | Dec 27, 2018
The defection of Senthil Balaji from the TTV Dinakaran camp to the DMK has come as a shock to the ruling AIADMK in Tamil Nadu as this is the first case of a member of the AIADMK family to join the DMK in recent times. The refrain of the AIADMK ever since the party...
Rangaraj | Dec 21, 2018
The 2014 DMK strategy of going it alone, jettisoning the Congress, its ally from 2004, proved disastrous for the Dravidian party as it drew a blank while its rival, the AIADMK walked away with 37 of the 39 Lok sabha seats in Tamil Nadu. On December 11, DMK...
Rangaraj | Dec 17, 2018
Congress 3, BJP 0. This amazing scorecard of the elections to five States on December 11 has opened up the fight for the 2019 Lok Sabha elections on a totally new frontier, with the Congress delivering a death-blow in the Hindu, Hindi heartland of Rajasthan, Madhya...
Rangaraj | Dec 12, 2018
The results of the elections to three States – MP, Rajasthan and Chhatisgarh – may have brought the Congress back to power and at the forefront of the struggle to dislodge the BJP from power at the Centre, but an analysis of the voting trends shows that the...
Rangaraj | Dec 12, 2018
The results of the elections to Assemblies of five States, particularly Rajasthan, Madhya Pradesh and Chattisgarh, could come as a big jolt to the BJP not just in terms of the possible loss of power in at least two States but could trigger a more serious loss of...
Rangaraj | Dec 10, 2018
In a re-affirmation of DMK’s commitment to be part of a front against the BJP in the Lok Sabha elections, DMK president M K Stalin and his sister Kanimozhi called on Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in Delhi on Sunday, ostensibly to wish her on her birthday, but more...
Rangaraj | Dec 9, 2018
The havoc caused by the cyclone has come as a challenge to AIADMK government but is a boon for the ruling AIADMK which has been looking for some opportunity to put off 20 by-elections in Tamil Nadu. The Chief Election Commission had said recently that by-elections...
Rangaraj | Dec 3, 2018
Much as actor Rajinikanth tries to cover up his BJP tag, the issue keeps cropping up every now and then, blocking the growth of his political party. His statement a few days ago indirectly praising PM Narendra Modi is the latest in the saga of the actor taking one...
Rangaraj | Nov 26, 2018
An architect of the 1996 United Front government at the Centre, N Chandrababu Naidu, is reviving the formula to form a coalition government that could oust the BJP from power. As in 1996, Chandrababu Nadu has met two southern stalwarts, H D Deve Gowda of the JD(S)...
Rangaraj | Nov 10, 2018
M K Stalin has been able to take over the Karunanidhi legacy in a much easier manner than many people have thought. However, his leadership is now under test with Tamil Nadu set for 20 to 24 Assembly by-elections in the next few months. Having missed the...
Rangaraj | Nov 1, 2018
For actor-turned politician, Rajinikanth, the dreaded moment has come much earlier than he expected. His worst fears of being at the receiving end of the main parties in Tamil Nadu have already come true, with a stinging Murasoli article describing him as a puppet...
Rangaraj | Oct 31, 2018
