A section of the Tamil Nadu BJP leadership is completely disappointed with the line-up of people arranged by Union Minister L Murugan for Pongal festivities organised at his residence and presided over by PM Modi. While it might all be very well for Murugan, who is Minister of State for I&B, to flaunt the presence of makers and cast and crew of the DMK-backed film Parasakthi, some BJP leaders were not comfortable with the presence of producer Akash Baskaran. He is related to late DMK patriarch M Karunanidhi and his late first son MK Muthu. His wife Dharini is MK Muthu’s granddaughter. Her dad is CK Ranganthan who owns Cavinkare. Her mother is Thenmozhi, Kalignar Karunanidhi’s granddaughter. The issue with Akash Bhaskaran’s presence at PM Modi’s event was that he had briefly figured in the TASMAC scam probe. Of course, the ED had to apologise to Bhaskaran as directed by the Madras High Court. Some TN BJP leaders feel a section of party leaders are always hell bent on bringing “not very desirable characters” into the party and thereby putting off genuine voters. Incidentally, neither PM Modi nor Murugan shared any pics of their interaction with Parasakthi actors on their timeline. It was done by the National Award-winning composer GV Prakash to share a photograph of his interaction with PM Modi as well as reveal the presence of Sivakarthikeyan and Ravi Mohan. Prakash also performed a track from his Tamil pride album Thiruvasagam for the first time at the event. Meanwhile, it is being said the real problem with TVK leader Vijay’s film Jana Nayagan, one hears, is that the protagonist is seen making a direct pitch against “political leadership” that it is communalising politics. Two, he is also seen speaking against “atma nirbhar bharat”. If the Congress has issues with Parasakthi because it is critical of Indira Gandhi, Jana Nayagan has clearly irked powers that be in Delhi.

Former Tamil Nadu BJP chief K Annamalai may be bristling at MNS chief Raj Thackeray’s “rasmalai” jibe at him and may have even dared the MNS leader to break his legs when he visits Mumbai next. While it may be all very well for the cop-turned-politician not to be afraid of Thackeray’s empty boasts, not many in Maharashtra BJP leadership are happy with Annamalai’s foot-in-the-mouth utterances. In fact questions are being asked about the need to even call Annamalai for canvassing  for BMC polls. That too at a time when the civic polls seemed nicely tied in ruling Mahayuti’s favour. “What was the need to ask Annamalai to campaign? This is a needless controversy. Annamalai has turned the media attention on himself. In any case we have very small pockets of influence of Tamil voters, whom we have been regularly reaching out to. Annamalai’s utterances on Mumbai have only been twisted to give an issue to the Opposition,” says a senior BJP leader. The only saving grace is that ahead of the civic polls the local media did not play up Annamalai’s comment. Mumbai as Maharashtra’s capital is an emotive issue and anyone familiar with its socio-politics will not even not go anywhere near this topic. He had said Mumbai, apart from being Maharashtra capital, is also an international city. In an interview to a Marathi TV channel, chief minister Devendra Fadnavis clarified that there was no need to take the Tamil leader seriously. He suggested that Annamalai was making an effort to communicate in his limited knowledge of Hindi. “It wasn’t as if the PM had spoken. Mumbai is an international city.” As for Raj Thackeray calling Annamalai a “rasmalai”, Fadnavis was dismissive of the MNS leader and felt he couldn’t be taken seriously.

West Bengal Chief Minister and TMC supremo Mamata Banerjee once again placed confrontation at the centre of her politics on January 8, when she entered the residence of political strategist Pratik Jain just as the Enforcement Directorate began a search. Jain is the director of I-PAC, the political consultancy that has advised the TMC since 2021 and is widely credited with playing a key role in the party’s landslide Assembly victory that year. According to Mamata, the agency’s objective was not law enforcement but the seizure of confidential TMC poll material, including candidate lists, campaign strategy documents, SIR-related papers and electronic data. The episode reinforced an image Banerjee has cultivated over decades as a political “street fighter”. Supporters point to her early days as a Youth Congress worker protesting against Jayaprakash Narayan, her emergence as a “giant-killer” after defeating Left heavyweight Somnath Chatterjee in the 1984 Lok Sabha elections, and decades of street battles against the Left that culminated in the Singur and Nandigram movements and the fall of the 34-year Left Front government in 2011. Senior TMC insiders cite precedents where confrontation brought political dividends: her February 3, 2019 dharna after a CBI raid on then police commissioner Rajeev Kumar in the Saradha scam case; her February 23, 2021 confrontation with a CBI team probing a coal smuggling case involving Abhishek Banerjee and his wife; and her May 17, 2021 six-hour stay at the CBI office as several TMC leaders were arrested in the Narada sting operation case. Leaders argue such confrontations help counter anti-incumbency, mask internal factional rifts and deflect attention from economic management and alleged scams. As elections approach, Didi has returned to the mode that has long defined her career: fighting her battles on the street.

Is the three-match one-day international series against New Zealand played in India worth the while? The same question was asked during the previous three-match series against South Africa. The discerning and the layman, not acquainted with ‘cricketnomics’, may be somewhat puzzled by the scheduling of the itineraries drawn by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). But the fact is that the BCCI closed its global media rights for September 2023-March 2028 at Rs 5963 crore with a commitment to the broadcaster a certain number of Tests, ODIs and Twenty20 internationals over a period of five home seasons. Viacom18 won the e-auction at Rs 3101 crore for digital and Rs 2862 crore for television. The average per match works out to Rs 67.76 crore. So the BCCI needed to work out an 88 match Future Tour Programmes (FTP) to encash its five-season agreement with Viacom 18. While the BCCI will receive money from the broadcaster, these matches also help the national selection committee to identify players and prepare the Indian team for next year’s ICC World Cup to be played in South Africa, Zimbabwe and Namibia. The ongoing series against New Zealand is of particular interest because it has put the focus back on Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli who are in the running for spots in the World Cup men in blue team. This is the only format the two giants of ODI cricket have chosen to play — they have retired from Test and Twenty20 cricket — and everyone has used the catchphrase “RoKo” to market the series which may not have really caught the imagination of the fans. Going back to the point of the need for an ODi series, it goes without saying that the media rights agreement has to be met with by the BCCI.

Tamil Nadu is experiencing a churning of this magnitude for the first time after MGR decoupled his political star with Kalaignar (his mentor and launch pad). The state was shaken, stirred and saturated with the rise of a new hope, an actor legend…a film super star pole vaulting into politics, with his unique generosity and charisma. MGR’s magic and the launch of his AIADMK, followed by the long years of dominance by his protégée J Jayalalithaa is still talked about. Shivaji Ganesan, Kamal Haasan tried but failed. Vijayakanth did make inroads while Rajinikanth very nearly entered it but backed off at the last moment. This is why everybody is keenly watching the entry of Vijay. He seems to have created some impact going by the huge attendance to his rallies. He has pitched himself and his party TVK as an alternative to DMK and this seems to have shaken the complacence of the DMK’s heir apparent …Udhayanidhi Stalin, another film star who basks in his entitlement. Is this jump from films to power as easy as it seems? Not really as Vijay is finding out. The Karur tragedy, roadblocks of the jittery opposition, the extreme challenges in releasing his swan song Jana Nayagan has hit hard but not shaken his confidence. His farewell film has run into trouble with Censor, then followed court cases as a resulted it will not be released during the Pongal festival. Will the late release work in his favour? Heads or tails, Vijay would have made his mark.

Ever since Chandrababu Naidu took over as the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh, the state is attracting big ticket investments from domestic and global players. The latest to enter the state is the Tata Group. The Tata Power Renewable Energy Ltd (TPREL) has decided to invest Rs 6,675 crore in Andhra Pradesh to set up India’s largest Ingot-Wafer facility at Nellore. Earlier, Tata Power was toying with the idea of setting it up in Odisha. May be Naidu’s sops and incentives worked. The ingots and wafers to be produced at Nellore facility are critical inputs for solar cells, modules and semiconductor application which would reduce import dependents for strategic components. As part of its clean energy commitment, TPREL will also establish a 200 MW captive green power plant to supply renewable energy to its Andhra facility. It is learnt that this is not the first project Odisha has lost to it neighbour Andhra. Corporate analysts talk about how the UK-based Semiconductor group SRAM & MRAM which had plans to invest Rs 30,000 crore in Odisha initially switched over to Andhra Pradesh. Likewise, even JSW EV retracted its decision to invest in Odisha and opted for Maharashtra. Arcelor Mittal which had plans to set up green field steel plant in Odisha has now decided to move to neighbouring Andhra. Looks like the business both local and global are comfortable in dealing with Chandrababu Naidu. So be it Google, Reliance, Adani, Hinduja’s, Arcelor Mittal and now Tatas seem to be reposing confidence on Chandrababu Naidu’s proactive governance style and deliverables.

A cursory glance at the profile of various candidates trying their luck in the upcoming municipal corporation elections in Maharashtra presents an interesting insight into their education, assets and property, their past and the party they belong to. The data reflects not just static wealth, but growth over election cycles. Under election law, candidates declare their movable and immovable assets, liabilities, education and if there are any criminal cases against them at the time of nomination. These details are made public. Hopefully, the voters will make their own assessment at the time of voting on 15 January 2026 across 29 municipal corporations throughout the state. A quick scan shows that in Nagpur, candidate asset declarations range from Rs 7.78 lakh to nearly Rs 95 crore. In Mumbai, former mayor Kishori Pednekar has declared a fantastic rise in her assets since the last civic election in 2017. It was Rs 1.61 crore in 2017, now touching Rs 5.26 crore. Deputy CM Eknath Shinde’s trusted soldier Sada Sarvankar’s son Samadhan has declared assets worth Rs 46.59 crore, one of the highest among BMC candidates. He is matched by former mayor Shraddha Jadhav of Shiv Sena (UBT), whose assets exceed Rs 46 crore, as well. The most common denominator about the candidates is that all of them are keen to serve the public.

Nominations in the ongoing municipal corporation polls in Maharashtra reveal interesting details and expectedly, those vying to enter the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC), the richest civic body, attract maximum attention. They are found across all parties and election wards. For instance, Deputy CM Eknath Shinde’s trusted soldier Sada Sarvankar’s son Samadhan has declared assets worth Rs 46.59 crore, one of the highest among BMC candidates. He is matched by former mayor Shraddha Jadhav of Shiv Sena (UBT), whose assets exceed Rs 46 crore as well. The astounding increase is over the 8 years, when the last BMC election was held in 2017. In Mumbai, most candidates possess multiple of crores, which include real estate, posh vehicles and gold or jewellery. They are spread across all major parties. Another facet is that female candidates are as wealthy as their male counterparts, in some cases even more. A few notables include former mayor Vishakha Sharad Raut (Ward No 191 Sena UBT). Her total assets stood at Rs 21.83 crore. The Increase over 2017 is Rs.7 crore. Former MLA Yamini Jadhav (Ward No. 209 Sena Shinde) shows total assets of Rs.14.57 crore. The increase is Rs 4 crore in just one year. Former MP Kirit Somaiya’s son Neel (Ward No. 107 BJP) has total assets of Rs 9 crore. In his case, the increase is of Rs 7 crore over 8 years. A recent entrant into the BJP, Tejaswi Abhishek Ghosalkar (Ward No. 2) has total assets worth Rs 5 crore, showing an increase of Rs 4.75 crore over the past 8 years. Veteran corporator Shailesh Phanse has declared assets worth Rs 25 crore (Ward 59 Sena UBT), showing a spectacular increase of Rs 16 crore over 8 years. In short, more candidates are well provided for than those lacking resources.

Is the Censor delay for Vijay’s film all aimed to strengthen the TVK chief’s support base and ensure its a superhit? Is the BJP-led Centre actually helping the superstar? As Vijay is facing an uphill task to get his last film Jana Nayagan released on Jan 9 and the Tamil Nadu Congress leaders are already blaming the Home Minister Amit Shah for it. A perception is growing in TN that the BJP is not obstructing the screening of the film but perhaps doing it all to increase his popularity among youth and women. It is being said the whole idea is to ensure that sizable votes of youth and women could now consolidate behind Vijay — that is to move away from the DMK. A strong TVK is bound to weaken the DMK. It is believed a three-way fight in TN will benefit the challenger AIADMK-BJP. Jana Nayagan was postponed two days before release due to a censor certificate delay.  While a Madras HC hearing is expected to pave way for its release next week, there is a growing view that Jana Nayagan’s Censor problems were clearly linked to Vijay’s political dalliances with the Congress — Rahul Gandhi had spoken to him post Karur incident. It is in this backdrop that top Congress leaders from AICC in charge Girish Chodankar to Tamil Nadu MPs — Manickam Tagore and Jothimani attacked the Centre for withholding Censor certificate for Vijay’s film. TN Congress sources however feel Vijay may not eventually take up Congress offer of an alliance. “Vijay may finally end up with the AIADMK-BJP.  Everyone in TN is heading that way. The DMK will also not take us on board,” pointed out a TN Congress leader.

Union Home minister Amit Shah is quite disappointed with his two-day visit to Tamil Nadu as his efforts to convince AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami (EPS) to take a leaf out of Bihar polls and follow chief minister Nitish Kumar’s lead of carrying everyone along to fight the assembly elections simply didn’t seem to work in Chennai. Shah held two rounds of meetings with AIADMK functionary SP Velumani, an emissary of EPS, and had conveyed to him that if AIADMK has to defeat the DMK it must learn to carry every one along — from TTV Dhinakaran-O Panneerselvam — to DMDK and the PMK. Just as Nitish Kumar had carried along Chirag Paswan and other NDA allies. Nitish Kumar was seen easily sharing seats with Paswan even though the latter’s LJP had in 2020 assembly polls fielded candidates against JD(U). Reluctant to play ball, EPS conveyed to Shah that at best he was willing to accommodate his former AIADMK colleagues by allotting about 10 seats. He firmly conveyed to Velumani that if EPS remained intransigent about accommodating ex AIADMK leaders such as OPS or TTV then he would only “be strengthening the DMK hands and help it to come back to power”. A prospect of defeat could lead to further erosion in its ranks which the AIADMK must avoid. Or it will see heavyweights leaving the party as it saw the exit of former minister Sengottaiyan. It may be recalled that Sengottaiyan had met with Amit Shah before joining Tamizhaga Vettri Kazhagham (TVK) led by superstar Vijay. Shah, who joined pre-Pongal celebrations in Tiruchirappalli under the party’s ‘Namma Ooru Modi Pongal’ programme, did not meet EPS. Things could perhaps be sorted out by his next visit to the state.

Tamil Nadu is on the boil over two cinematic events and the heroes involved…one aspiring to become the next chief minister, the other using his political sinews to hold on. Even as Vijay’s Jana Nayagan announced 9th January to hit cinemas and Red Giant’s distributed Parasakhti starring Sivakarthikeyan was pitched for the 10th January, a jugalbandi that many think is hopelessly one sided…pitched in Vijay’s favour. Add to that the trailer of Jana Nayagan released on 3rd January…testosterone action and rocking music filled with incendiary dialogues of Vijay; it got 20 lakh hits in just half an hour. Vijay’s character is Dalapathi Vettri Kondaan, a double meaning title which means “I am coming to stay. Not going back”. But there are some road bumps too, behind the scenes…delaying announcing booking and screens for Vijay’s film, seen as political pressure from Udhayanidhi Stalin’s Red Giant movies. There are those who insist that Jana Nayagan is commercially poised to get 60% of screens, Parasakhti a mere 40%. But, Theatre Owners Association President Thiruppur Subramanian is quick to correct this view of political pressure on the logistics of a film release. “Distributors want 75-80% of vasool. We can give only 70%…in Kerala it is only 60%… but in Coimbatore and Tirunelveli it is almost 80%”. Will Jana Nayagan win or the political Sakti of Parasakhti?.

The CEO of Air India has been in the eye of the storm ever since the airlines Dreamliner crashed in Ahmedabad last year that killed 260 passengers. Since then there have been rumours from time to time that the New Zealander Cambell Wilson may be asked to go. His management and planning skills have not impressed the Group Chairman N Chandrasekaran. He has been criticised for his inability to execute agreed plans and not being able to fight problems. The airline has received show cause notices from the DGCA for alleged violations and non-compliances, which includes operation of an aircraft with an expired license as per reports.  Air India and Air India Express together have already reported a loss of Rs 10,859 crore in FY25 on revenue of Rs 78,636 crore. This has made them the biggest loss-making companies within the Tata Group. Wilson’s term runs till June 2027 but will he continue till then? The big rumour going around is Tata Group Chairman N Chandrasekhar is thinking of replacing Air India CEO. Wilson, it may be recalled, was picked as CEO  for Air India because of his proven track record with Singapore Airlines including Scoot, the world’s best long haul low cost carrier. Besides, his exposure to sales and marketing functions.

London-based Siba Ranjan Biswal will be awarded the prestigious Ratnashri Puraskar at Utkala Utsaba-2026 event in New Delhi. Biswal who works with Tata Consultancy Services, UK is widely recognised for his community service and leadership among the Odia diaspora in the UK. He played a key role in establishing and installing the deities of Lord Jagannath in Manchester. In recognition of his work in human empowerment, social service, and support for India’s nation-building efforts, the World Odisha Society will confer the award on 14th January during the 5th Foundation Day celebrations of Utkala Utsaba. The grand event will showcase Odisha’s rich art forms and cultural heritage and representatives from over 72 countries are expected to attend the event. Among the attendees will be Lok Sabha speaker Om Birla, Minister of Road Transport & Highways Nitin Gadkari, Odisha Governor Hari Babu Kambhampati, and senior ministers from the state and the Centre. Biswal moved to the UK in 2006, initially working at Manchester Metropolitan  before joining TCS. He remains actively involved with the Odisha Society of the UK. Recently, he founded Essar Events to serve the Indian diaspora, promoting cultural exchange between the UK and India.

The South’s famed and amazing temples, their lore and stunning period architecture, overflowing devotion saw yet another strong thrust when the Home Minister came on a two day visit to Tiruchirappalli, Tamil Nadu. It is well known that he combines temple visits whenever the campaign whistle stops permit. This time it was to participate in the Modi Pongal event at Tiruchi …even as Shah stirred the brim filled Pongal pot his admirers and party members wished for a vigorous stir of the political pot in the coming election, giving NDA combine the sweet taste of ‘Sakkarai Pongal’ ….redolent with rice in fresh milk, generous ghee, profusion of nuts , cardamom and the newly harvested jaggery stirred to perfection …a ritual not many miss in TN , to celebrate the plentiful harvest. After Shah‘s Srirangam Temple visit, he made a stop at the Thiruvanaikovil Jambukeswarar and Akilandeswari temple on the Northern banks of the Kaveri. This temple is unique as one of the Pancha Bhoota temples (five elements earth, water, fire, air and space…there is an underground perennial spring in which the Lingam is submerged). Shiva’s consort Parvati known as Akhilandeswari is said to have her Thadangams (outsize earrings) gifted by Aadi Sankara. But above all, devotees’ prayers here are granted. Shah just walked out of his security cordon to the lined-up crowd, greeted them, shook hands with some, adding to their happiness.

DMK MP Kanimozhi had an interesting start to her 58th birthday. TVK chief and superstar Vijay wished her. So did Union Home Minister Amit Shah. This has set off a lot of political buzz. Since Vijay personally called Kanimozhi, it gained significant political attention given their roles in different parties ahead of the Tamil Nadu assembly elections this year. Shah, who was in TN for election campaigning, also called Kanimozhi to extend his birthday greetings. Shah has been regularly greeting her on birthdays. As for the birthday girl, Kanimozhi began her day by paying tribute at the memorials of former chief ministers CN Annadurai and her father M Karunanidhi at Marina Beach. What is the reason that TVK chief Vijay, who is vowing to oust the DMK, has begun to court Kanizmozhi? Apparently, it is not without reason.  A Lok Sabha MP and DMK’s Deputy General Secretary, Kanimozhi has been increasingly finding herself isolated and limited in party affairs. Her half-brother chief minister MK Stalin along with son and Deputy CM Udhayanidhi recently held a meeting of the DMK Women’s Wing in Tirupur. While the CM talked about launching Bihar style sops to women ahead of the polls, Kanimozhi’s posters were apparently missing at the event. This considering she is in charge of the DMK Women’s Wing. Her pictures were apparently added to the Stalin family posters as an afterthought. It is being said that supporters of Kanimozhi in the DMK do not wish for return of the party to power as it would mean working under Udhayanidhi’s leadership, who is being clearly projected as the heir apparent. For them, the choice would any day be to rally behind Kanimozhi and help TVK chief superstar Vijay.

Priyanka Gandhi Vadra’s decision to be on the screening committee to pick candidates for Assam assembly elections is being viewed in party circles as a stepping stone to her larger role in Congress affairs eventually. It may seem odd that a Gandhi family member has deemed it fit to chair a state’s candidate screening committee. That too when another family confidante and a close Rahul Gandhi aide Jitendra Singh, is in charge of the state. Well, if Priyanka thinks she has stepped into Assam to pose a challenge to incumbent CM Himanta Biswa Sarma and oust the decade old BJP regime, it is surely not going to be an easy task. Himanta has already declared that the ruling BJP and its allies in the NDA are likely to win 103 of the 126 assembly seats. He attributed the higher winning rate of the NDA to delimitation. In these circumstances, what would be Priyanka’s role? Is she coming to mobilise votes of Muslims in Assam? Last month CM Sarma had flagged the rise of phenomenal growth of Muslim population and had blamed the Congress for it. The Muslims are largely loyal to the All India United Democratic Front led by Badruddin Ajmal. In the last elections, AIUDF won 16 seats. It is possible Priyanka has come to strengthen the hands of youthful Assam Congress chief Gaurav Gogoi who is not a much-liked figure. Maybe Priyanka thinks Assam is a low-hanging fruit since in the last elections the difference in the votes in Assam between the NDA and the Opposition alliance was only 1.6% — though the NDA won 75 seats and the Opposition 50. Meanwhile, Rahul Gandhi one hears has taken off to Vietnam. Of course, BJP’s Amit Malviya insists Rahul has set up Priyanka for “failure”.

Maharashtra has registered the record number of candidates – never witnessed ever before – unable to file their official party nominations for the forthcoming civic elections scheduled for January 15. A second record set was the number of candidates (belonging to the ruling Mahayuti) being elected unopposed already and yet questions of political impropriety, unethical behavior, and unscrupulous use of power remains to be answered. Consider Mumbai, where candidates belonging to the Congress, RPI and AAP parties allegedly were physically prevented from filing respective nominations from the south Mumbai citadel controlled by Speaker of the Maharashtra state legislature Rahul Narvekar whose sister, brother and sister-in-law are BJP candidates for civic corporator seats located within his assembly constituency. Narvekar has denied any wrongdoing or even being heavy handed with a far more senior politician from the Congress party Haribhau Rathod. And yet, viral videos appear to belie his averments. The State Election department was compelled to direct BMC chief Bhushan Gagrani to submit his report regarding alleged incidents in the prestigious south Mumbai constituency. Allegations also abound about Returning Officer Krishna Jadhav having served as Officer on Special Duty to erstwhile CM Eknath Shinde, further queering the political pitch against the expected level playing field. RPI candidate from seat number 227 (held by Narvekar’s own brother) Vaishali Gawde says she was physically prevented by sub-inspector of police, S Shinde attached to the JJ Police station from submitting her candidature form tantamount to a case under POSH. Is democracy in Maharashtra’s posh Mumbai on the ebb?

While the Maha Vikas Aghadi which is in shambles is finding it difficult to find sufficient candidates to field for the coming municipal corporation elections in Maharashtra, the ruling Mahayuti has already opened its account in some cities. The most striking score, so far, is in Panvel, a satellite town of Mumbai. At least eight BJP candidates have been considered elected since there are no opposition nominees. Similarly, major corporations like Kalyan-Dombivali, Thane, Bhiwandi, Ahilya Nagar, Jalgaon and Pune are following suit. Incidentally, most victorious candidates are proved lucky since in several places, their opponents were eliminated as their nomination documents were found lacking in scrutiny. While chief minister Devendra Fadnavis has expressed confidence that the Mahayuti will sweep all the 29 municipal corporations on 16 January, deputy CM Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena, too, has half a dozen winners to its credit. Although there was large scale defection and rebellion till the other day, leaders of all major parties have become successful in quelling the revolts. Munira Shaikh Fakir Mohamed of Islam Party has been elected unopposed from a ward in Malegaon, considered a sensitive town communally. The Congress and the Nationalist Congress Party led by veteran Sharad Pawar appear to be the most vulnerable in the power play. The final picture will be clear by Saturday (Jan3) when the names of those who have withdrawn from the contest will become known. Nonetheless, the saffron outfit is already on cloud nine.

If you are worried about the future of Mumbai, wait till 16 January since the brothers Thackeray have promised the moon to Mumbaikars if they come to power in the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) on that day. The only catch is that the two parties, the Shiv Sena (UBT) and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS), are facing a formidable adversary, the BJP-led Mahayuti, which is ruling Maharashtra with a thumping majority. Moreover, most former BMC corporators and Mumbai MLAs are in the saffron fold, complemented by deputy chief minister Eknath Shinde’s Shiv Sena. In addition, the Congress has decided to go it alone, making the Sena’s challenge more difficult. Given this ground reality, Sena (UBT) leader Aaditya Thackeray and his cousin, MNS scion Amit Thackeray, have come out with a fantastic manifesto for Mumbai to lure the voters. The duo has made such tall promises that if ever they become a reality, Mumbai will compete with the best cities around the world. For instance, housing units with an area up to 700 sq ft will be exempted from property tax. Secondly, the female domestic servants in Mumbai will be paid a monthly dole of Rs 1500. Fisherwomen will be provided with meals at Rs 10; young entrepreneurs will be extended Rs 1 lakh as employment assistance fund; all BMC parking lots will be free of charge; zero bill for power consumers using 100 units or less per month and a mini sports complex in each civic ward. Interestingly, the manifesto has kept away from the touchy issue of the declaration that the next Mumbai mayor will be a Marathi Manoos.

A recent Tamil film with unknown cast and a pedestrian title, Middle Class did fair business at cinemas and is now getting attention on OTT. Middle Class is about a middle-class family, their middle class aspirations and a predictable middle class life that takes an unexpected turn for the not so middle class twist …Munishkant and Vijayalakshmi, pitch their ordinary life roles dramatically, to tug at the heart strings. The film has a touching existential life lesson too…sharing and caring brings the most happiness. Soon to be released Toxic …A Fairy Tale For Grown-Ups is definitely a Noire film, stylish, sexy and shadowy. A line up of femme fatales … .Kiara Advani, Nayanthara, Tara Sutaria , Huma Qureshi and Rukmini Vasanth orbiting Kannada super star Yash (of KGF fame ) ply their trade and tricks in Toxic. Directed by Geetu Mohandas bold, beautiful and boss director who has bagged significant film awards (Liar’s Dice, Akale) brings a tale of deception, betrayal and drug lord crime in the Goa of 80’s period gangster setting. Tamil cinema fans were treated to a Nayanthara still in her skin — flick ensemble …she plays Ganga in Toxic…memory dredges up another titillating title Ram Teri Ganga Maili. Toxic was filmed simultaneously in Kannada and English, dubbed in Tamil, Telugu and Hindi. These are just two extreme book ends of the variety films offer …whether the viewers lap up the offering or not, the cinema machine is ready to churn the pot of gold.

India’s cleanest city, Indore, which has bagged this title eight times in a row, has now seen 15 deaths due to contaminated water. This week has been horrific for Indore as families lost their loved ones, their kids and parents, to the water crisis in the city. The issue began on Dec 29 night after several locals began vomiting and developed a high fever suddenly. District Collector Shivam Verma added that initial laboratory reports confirmed contamination of water supply from a toilet that was reportedly built on the drinking water line without any safety tank underneath. According to officials, samples tested positive for fecal coliform, E.coli and Klebsiella bacteria, all of which can cause severe vomiting and diarrhoea. The tragic water contamination scare had left many families devastated. A private school teacher lost her five-month-old son after she mixed contaminated water with his milk. The son was born after 10 years of waiting, the woman said. Meanwhile, politics peaked over the Indore deaths with Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launching a sharp attack on the Madhya Pradesh Govt over Indore water contamination issue. “Those whose hearths have gone cold needed consolation; the government served them arrogance instead,” Rahul Gandhi said in a post on X. His remarks were aimed at MP Minister for Urban Development Kailash Vijayvargiya whose rough and ready ways in dealing with the civic crisis has shocked everyone. He snapped at a reporter for posing a query about safe drinking water still not reaching people. Though he took to X to explain his rude conduct, it explained nothing. Close to Home Minister Amit Shah, Vijayvargiya may survive in office — Shah had deputed him for 2021 Bengal polls, but will he survive public wrath or pass PM Modi’s muster? Everyone is talking about how he has been sitting on a file for the new Narmada water supply line in the area. One hears the tender was opened only after people started dying!

After inaugurating the Jagannath Dham in Digha earlier this year, West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee laid the foundation stone of the Durga Angan project in Kolkata and reiterated that the Mahakal Temple in Siliguri will be inaugurated in the second week of January. Envisioned as a permanent, year-round space for the worship of Goddess Durga, Durga Angan project spread over 17 acres will cost Rs 262-crore. It is being developed by the West Bengal Housing Infrastructure Development Corporation in partnership with the state government. According to the project blueprint, the complex will span over two lakh square feet and include a temple courtyard capable of accommodating 1,000 devotees at a time, a 20-foot-wide circumambulatory path, 1,008 pillars and a main sanctum rising to a height of 54 metres. Along with the principal mandap, the complex will feature a Singhadwar and several auxiliary mandaps. The government has projected infrastructure to handle up to one lakh visitors daily, with additional facilities for art, heritage studies and cultural activities, positioning it as a major cultural and tourism hub. Linking the project to UNESCO’s 2021 recognition of Durga Puja in Bengal as an ‘Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity’, Didi believes that the state had a responsibility to preserve and pass on the honour to future generations. However, the initiative has triggered sharp political reactions. BJP MP Jyotirmoy Singh Mahato alleged that projects like Durga Angan are driven by Mamata’s personal political agenda, claiming religious symbolism would not yield electoral gains.. BJP IT cell head Amit Malviya alleged financial irregularities, claimed protests over the land earmarked for the project and accused the CM of undermining religious sanctity for political gains.

Ahead of the 2026 West Bengal Assembly elections, a sharp political divide is emerging. Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee is foregrounding Bengali language, asmita, and secularism, projecting her government as pro-people through social welfare schemes and friendly governance. Conversely, the BJP is centring its campaign on illegal infiltration, corruption, misgovernance and a “climate of fear,” as outlined by Union Home Minister Amit Shah. During a three-day Kolkata tour, Shah intensified attacks on the Trinamool Congress, alleging that 15 years of rule have been paralysed by “syndicate-driven practices” and corruption, hindering development and central scheme implementation. Shah accused Mamata of nepotism, claiming power concentrated around her nephew, Abhishek Banerjee. He further criticised the appointment of senior police officials, alleging deviations from norms via the use of retired officers as proxy heads. On national security, Shah labelled illegal immigration a critical concern. He alleged the state failed to provide land for border fencing, claiming while infiltration dropped in Assam and Tripura, it persists in Bengal due to “vote-bank considerations.” He cited the BJP’s growth from 17 % vote share and two Lok Sabha seats in 2014 to 39 % vote share and 12 seats in 2024 as evidence of momentum. Banerjee launched a counterattack by questioning why the Centre focuses on Bengal while ignoring security issues in regions like Jammu and Kashmir. Finally, she questioned the timing of BJP’s deportation promises, noting that Bengal and Punjab bore the historical brunt of 1947’s Partition displacement.

Apparently, there isn’t the usual rush of visitors at the BJP headquarters in New Delhi these days. No, it has nothing to do with the winter blues. It has got more to do with the appointment of new BJP working president Nitin Nabin. It is being said the usual throng is missing. Perhaps, people are waiting for Nabin to be formally installed as party president which will happen very soon. Along with him, a new set of office-bearers will also take charge. It is being said that only people who are now being spotted at headquarters are people from Nabin’s hometurf — that is Bihar — probably taking a lot of pride in the big office he will soon occupy.  Of course, Nabin himself has been busy traveling to Puducherry in the South and Patna. An interesting fallout of Nabin’s elevation is that the other serious BJP president hopeful — Union Environment Minister Bhupendra Yadav — has finally begun attending to his ministerial responsibility. Yadav could be heard speaking about Delhi’s toxic AQI only after Nabin’s elevation. Meanwhile, there are also misgivings about Nabin’s rise within the BJP. It is felt he would always be remote controlled. He would remain the best bet for whoever picked him for the top job. Perhaps that was why he was chosen!

With the emergence of Tamil Vetri Katchi (TVK) and actor Vijay drawing phenomenal crowds for his meetings, the Congress is no longer sure if it would benefit from sustaining its alliance with the DMK. Aware that it may not be easy to just walk out of the DMK alliance that is nearly two decades old, a section of the Congress is exploring ways to break off and stitch up a pact with Vijay’s TVK. Officially, while AICC managers, dealing with TN are fretting about finalising seat agreement with the DMK before an imaginary deadline. And somewhere out of the blue, Praveen Chakravarty, a close Rahul Gandhi aide and head of All India Professionals’ Congress (AIPC), began attacking the DMK government for TN’s rising debt. Praveen’s post on X drew sharp reactions from the DMK. While the BJP enjoyed Praveen’s post, TN Cong MPs were simply not comfortable with Praveen’s attack on the DMK and TN’s debt comparisons with Uttar Pradesh. Sharpest assessment came from former IAS officer turned MP Sasikanth Senthil posted on X “Judging states by absolute debt is like judging fitness by body weight — no height, no muscle, just vibes.” TNCC chief Selvaperunthagai, in a post on X, dubbed Praveen as acting against Congress interest. As for Praveen interacting and negotiating with actor Vijay, AICC managers made it clear that it was neither “official” or authorised. The only AICC leader who is very keen about a tie-up with actor Vijay and TVK it seems is AICC General Secretary KC Venugopal who is fancying himself as the next Kerala CM. Venugopal wants a Congress-TVK tie-up to help sweep Kerala polls. He is not bothered about performance in TN. Looks like Praveen is negotiating with Vijay on behalf of Venugopal. As for TN polls, one hears DMK leader Kanimozhi is also not keen for Stalin’s return to power.

The entry of Rashid Mamu, former mayor of Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar, in the Shiv Sena led by Uddhav Thackeray has stirred a hornet’s nest because prominent Sena leaders from that city have publicly objected to this development. Local Sena leaders complain that this entry has been engineered by former legislative council opposition leader Ambadas Danve without consulting them. Former MP Chandrakant Khaire, a close loyalist of Balasaheb Thackeray, has reminded the Sena leadership that Rashid Mamu was among those who had pelted stones at a Sena procession taken out to demand a Uniform Civil Code some years ago. Khaire has declared that he will make efforts to ensure that Mamu is not selected by the party to contest the civic election from Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar. Mamu was admitted into the Sena at Matoshri in Mumbai in presence of Uddhav and Danve. Chief minister Devendra Fadnavis, too, has castigated Uddhav Sena for welcoming Mamu in its fold. In a stinging indictment, Fadnavis has said, “It is extremely painful to see that such an individual (Mamu) has been admitted by the Sena (UBT). This decision has been taken by the son of Hindu Hriday Samrat Balasaheb Thackeray for gaining votes. This type of appeasement of licking somebody’s shoes for political benefit makes me very sad.” The CM has warned his erstwhile ally that patriots and nationalists will not pardon the Sena (UBT) for such decisions.    

Controversy seems to be chasing Dr Achyuta Samanta founder of Odisha’s KIIT/KISS University. For the third time this year he is now being questioned about the death of a KISS student. It began with the suicide of Nepalese KIIT student Prakriti Lamsal allegedly over sexual harassment in February 2025. Close on the heels another girl student Prisha Shah committed suicide in May 2025 and in December 2025, a class IX tribal student died under mysterious circumstances.  It was falsely certified as cardiac arrest. But the parents of the boy smelled foul play and asked the Odisha police to investigate it. The Odisha Police post mortem report says that the boy died by strangulation and not by slipping in the bathroom as certified by KISS/KIMS. Based on this report the National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) has swung into action and has raised important questions: One who is the mastermind behind this incident trying to suppress the murder issue; Two, why due process of law not followed and police not informed and why action should not be taken against the institution. Odisha chief minister is already facing political heat on this issue as Bonai MLA Laxman Munda has already blown the tribal bugle alleging that administrative connections are shielding KISS/KIIT/KIMS founder Dr Samanta from meaningful scrutiny so far. Odisha TV played a big role in exposing the truth. The ball now is in Odisha CM’s court and everybody awaits his decision.

It must be hard to trade places with Vikram Prabhu, Kollywood’s heir to an illustrious film family. Whatever he achieves is sure to be overshadowed by his legendary grandfather, Thespian Shivaji Ganesan and his popular father, actor Prabhu. Maybe that’s why he went off to America as a youngster to find and immerse himself in a totally new, almost alien career path. To this day, Tamil cinema has not replicated an actor of Simha kuralon (Lion’s voice) Shivaji Ganesan’s talent…every role etched in the audience memory, a complete one-man acting university. His son Prabhu never tried to fit into his father’s legacy …he just carved himself a space, popular and acclaimed, never mind the role nor his persona. Vikram Prabhu is all set for the screening of his 25th film, Sirai (prison). It’s aptly titled even as this Nepo kid has established a name for himself, but trying his best to break out of that DNA prison, and set his own Star Trek. His first film Khumki was well received in 2012. Vikram Prabhu is a low key person…not stepping out of that spotlight that made his grandfather a cinematic legend. He still remembers his grandfather bellowing across a transcontinental line “Are you still an Indian or have you turned into an American?”. Today, Kollywood has a sudden exodus of super stars like Vijay and Ajith…Kamal and Rajini finding it challenging to please Gen Z , and Suriya, Sivakarthikeyan trying to fill the void. Vikram Prabhu has the right DNA .. if only he could prise himself out of the wall he has built around himself.

More than a decade after the Tata Group exited Singur following protests led by then Opposition leader Mamata Banerjee, the Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo, now West Bengal chief minister, has cleared a Rs 500-crore investment proposal for the same area, signalling a renewed push for industrial development. Political observers see this as an effort to reinforce her government’s pro-industry image and revive Singur ahead of the 2026 Assembly elections. The Mamata Banerjee-led Cabinet approved a large warehouse and logistics project at Singur, marking a symbolic turnaround for a site central to her political rise. Minister of State for Finance Chandrima Bhattacharya said Nahar Industrial Enterprises Ltd will invest Rs 500 crore, with 11.35 acres allotted on a 99-year lease. The facility is expected to bolster logistics and delivery operations for major e-commerce players such as Amazon and Flipkart, generate employment, and strengthen supply-chain infrastructure. Singur gained national prominence in 2006–08 after protests against land acquisition for the Tata Motors Nano factory under the CPI(M)-led Left Front government. The agitation, led by Didi, ended with Tata Motors pulling out in October 2008, and the Left branding her “anti-industry.” More than 14 years after assuming power in 2011, Mamata has now facilitated major private investment at the same site. This follows a 2016 Supreme Court verdict directing the TMC government to take possession of about 1,000 acres and return it to farmers, declaring the earlier acquisition illegal.

Chennai-based Residency Group of Hotels, a part of the Appaswamy Real Estates conglomerate, is now spreading its wings to Madurai, Mysore and the Maldives. The Madurai project with 188-room is being set up at a cost of Rs 150 crore. The unique part of this project is its 56,000 sq ft convention centre, perhaps one of the largest in the region, capable of hosting around Rs 2,000-3,000 people at a time. In the Maldives, the second upcoming project will be a villa-led luxury resort in partnership with the Marriott. As a part of the ongoing expansion in Tier 2 cities, the group is planning an upscale hotel in Mysuru as well. And, the upcoming Mysuru project is being developed under the owner-operator model. All combined, the group has drawn up an investment plan of around Rs 2,500 crore for the next three years. The company currently has seven projects, namely The Residency Chennai, The Residency Towers Chennai, The Residency Towers Puducherry, Richmond Puducherry, The Residency Towers Coimbatore, The Residency Towers Rameshwaram and The Residency Karur. Without including the Maldives, the group has a room inventory of around 700 rooms. Appaswamy Real Estates was founded in 1959 by S Appaswamy. It forayed into hospitality sector in the early nineties is now managed by founder’s son Ravi Appasamy

Psephologists and political analysts have started gearing up in Maharashtra where various municipal corporation elections are scheduled on 15 January. Expectedly, the initial focus is on making predictions about the number of seats likely to be won by the ruling saffron Mahayuti, led by the BJP, in Mumbai. The fight for the BMC will be thus mainly confined between the BJP and the alliance of the Shiv Sena (UBT) and the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (Sena), led by the cousins, Uddhav and Raj Thackeray. The first such prediction has been posted by Amitabh Tiwari of ‘Vote India Vibe.’ According to him, the Mahayuti can win up to 114 seats in the 227-member civic body, followed by the Sena alliance at around 80. The basis for this estimate is the voting pattern witnessed in the assembly election held a year earlier. The Mahayuti had won almost 240 seats in the 288-member house. The other factor in reaching this conclusion is the demographic profile of Mumbai. As of now, the Congress party has decided to go it alone in the election, underscoring the possibility of a split in the opposition vote. More such ‘surveys’ are expected to tumble out in the next two weeks, about Mumbai and other major cities like Pune, Nagpur and Chhatrapati Sambhaji Nagar.

Elections to the Brihanmumbai Municipal Corporation (BMC) – the most prestigious and cash richest civic body housed within the financial capital of India — will be held on January 15. Seat number 227 (identical to the total tally of seats in BMC) sees the Congress party faced with a Hobson’s choice, where two Christian women are vying for the party candidature. One resourceful hospitality sector entrepreneur – Laura D’Souza  and the other – Vaishali Gawde – grass-roots worker of the party who will need the party’s financial investment into her candidature if selected as the party candidate. The seat is housed in the most prestigious Lok Sabha and Vidhan Sabha parliamentary and assembly constituencies of Mumbai that used to be the HQ of the Jan Sangh now BJP. Back then the undivided Shiv Sena under Uddhav Thackeray had wrested the seat despite protestations from the BJP. After all, former Union Power Minister Jaywantiben Mehta held the seat for over a decade. Shiv Sena candidate Arvind Sawant still won convincingly with 50K votes more than his nearest opponent and has enjoyed voter confidence ever since. BJP’s state assembly winner and Speaker in Maharashtra’s state legislature Rahul Narvekar is credited with being the real political powerhouse in the belt alongside the developmental skill sets of neighboring Malabar Hill MLA Mangal Prabhat Lodha. Narvekar’s younger brother has been the corporator elected from the seat and is likely to field his wife this time round. Coming back to the Congress candidate chosen for seat 227 – she will have to be a real giant killer. UBT Sena has tied up with MNS while Congress, Sharad Pawar’s NCP are seeking Prakash Ambedkar’s Dalit vote bank separately.

The Indian team for the ICC World Twenty20 bash in India (and Sri Lanka) from February 2026 has been announced, and not one and all is happy with the inequity in Shubman Gill being shown the door and Suryakumar Yadav being retained in spite of his meagre returns this year. The selection committee Chairman Ajit Agarkar and head coach Gautam Gambhir have taken a call on Gill not to pick him for the Twenty20 World Cup because he has been far from spectacular. He has made only 291 runs in 15 matches, but what has Suryakumar Yadav done with the bat this year? 21 matches, 218 runs, average 13.63, scoring rate 7.39! Clearly the selection committee and Gambhir do not want to dump him for not being upto a scratch in 19 innings of the 21 matches he has played. They have given credence to the number of runs he has scored in 2022 (1164 runs), 2023 (733) and 2024 (429). Moreover, as captain he has won 30 of the 38. It must be noted that Gill and Abhishek Sharma, as the opening pair, have tallied 560 runs in 17 innings which is 22.44% contribution to the team score. Gill and Yashasvi Jaiswal have made 527 runs in 10 innings for a team contribution percentage of 30.22, whereas Abhishek Sharma and Sanju Samson have made 330 runs in 13 innings for a team contribution percentage of 12.79. Both Gill and Yadav have not been on good nick this year, but Gill has been sidelined and Yadav retained for his leadership, which in a way says that no one wants to bring back Hardik Pandya (16 matches, 10 wins, 5 losses,1 tie) as captain!

The battle lines have been drawn. Even as the much-hyped anticipation is churned up for Vijay’s last film Jana Nayagan to hit cinemas on January 9, avant garde director Sudha Kongara and Dawn Pictures have cantered in from behind to release Parasakthi on January 10, originally planned to be a Pongal screening. Vijay fans, now turned TVK party followers are fretting and fuming over this sudden change. Is Sivakarthikeyan throwing his gauntlet in the popularity ring? As it is, fans and fierce loyalists of Vijay drum beat about no suitable successor to fill his slot. But Sivakarthikeyan is super confident about moving into any slot. Kongara is canny enough to buy insurance …just in case. A very novel and creative promo event was staged at Valluvar Kottam, Chennai’s not-to-be missed Dravida symbol tourist spot. Sudha Kongara’s team built a full exhibition of Parasakthi sets, props and visuals that took fans on a Time Travel into the 1960s retro world of Parasakthi. The response from the public was overwhelming. Kongara said emotionally “For Gen Z it was a time machine that transported them to an entirely different cultural ethos of the 60s”. The antiquated train and the vintage Chevrolet were super draws, with AI providing thrill experiences to the visitor. But wait… is the old iconic Parasakthi film (a watershed joint venture of Shivaji Ganesan as hero and Kalaignar Karunanidhi as the script writer) being challenged by this new yet old Parasakthi?

With the West Bengal Assembly elections just months away, veteran politician Humayun Kabir’s decision to launch his own outfit, Janata Unnayan Party and openly challenge chief minister Mamata Banerjee has added an unexpected twist to an already heated political season. Kabir announced that his party will contest 135 of Bengal’s 294 Assembly seats. There is speculation that he could split the Muslim votes in the state. If that happens, it could seriously hurt Didi’s Trinamool Congress party, which draws significant support from Bengal’s 27% Muslim population. The TMC has downplayed the move as a sideshow. The development has invited comparisons with Banerjee’s own break from the Congress in 1998, when she formed the Trinamool Congress, eventually ending the Left Front’s long rule. According to a section of political observers, Kabir’s situation is different as he does not command a mass following, nor have a statewide organisational structure or a clear ideological pitch that can cut across regions and communities. However, his move cannot be dismissed entirely since his criticism of the Trinamool’s leadership style — particularly its highly centralised decision-making — have quietly circulated within party ranks. By stepping out, Kabir has brought these murmurs into the open. From an electoral perspective, the immediate impact on the ruling party is likely to be limited as Trinamool remains firmly deep-rooted across most of the state. A section of party sources, however, feel that in tightly contested constituencies, even a marginal split in votes — especially among minorities — could tilt the balance. For the opposition, including the BJP, Kabir’s entry not only highlights cracks within the ruling camp but may also split the anti-Trinamool vote further.

For a change, the customary tea party hosted by Lok Sabha Speaker Om Birla at the end of Winter Session for party leaders struck a pleasant note. Unlike in the past, when there would be no conversation, except exchange of courtesies, the brief meeting between PM Modi and senior minister Rajnath Singh with Opposition leaders like Priyanka Gandhi and senior leaders from Kerala like RSP MP NK Premachandran went off very well. Did it have anything to do with the absence of Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi who is known to be stiff when it comes to dealing with PM Modi or anyone in the government? Has Priyanka Gandhi’s presence made all the difference? Did she persuade the Opposition to join the Speaker’s tea party? Senior MPs from Kerala deny it wasn’t Priyanka’s idea to attend the Speaker’s tea. “Normally, at the end of every Parliament Session both the ruling and Opposition leaders meet the Speaker to thank him. Since the Monsoon Session was a washout, we had decided to give Speaker’s tea a miss. It had nothing to do with Rahulji’s presence or absence,” says a Kerala MP. At the same time the Kerala leader concedes that the Speaker’s tea meeting without Rahul Gandhi was a pleasant affair. It perhaps had a lot to do with the informal exchanges PM Modi had with Priyanka and Premachandran. Like Priyanka asking PM Modi about his latest foreign visit and the small talk about Wayanad herbal drink for her throat. BJP sources say ever since she became a MP Priyanka has been reaching out to the government. She had sought out a meeting with Home Minister Amit Shah and during the session met with Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari. Unlike her brother, she is open to the idea of having a dialogue with the government.

In Odisha, there is a public outrage over the recent three-fold salary hike — from Rs 1 lakh to Rs 3.45 lakh — of the Odisha legislators. Even Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah have expressed their displeasure over this unprecedented hike. Now, it is learned that Odisha CM Mohan Charan Majhi is taking corrective steps. Sources say, after the salary hike was passed in the Odisha Assembly, CM Majhi was summoned to Delhi by BJP national General Secretary BL Santosh on December 14. Reportedly, it was conveyed to Majhi about PM’s displeasure over the hefty hike which could be sending a wrong signal to other BJP ruled states which are getting lesser pay and allowances. Santosh expressed his surprise how Majhi could take such a bold and swift decision without consulting the central leadership. Majhi has now been advised to roll back the pay hike decision and the first step is to pass a resolution by the legislature party. Parliamentary Affairs Minister Mukesh Mahaling said that such an important decision taken without consulting the central leadership was not well received by the Centre. This massive embarrassment has been saved just in time as the Governor is yet to give his assent on the Bill. As a first step towards roll back, a resolution was adopted for reconsideration of the Bill regarding legislators pay hike passed on December 9 at BJP Legislature Party chaired by the CM.

Indians are known to flout any and every rule if they are not watched or stopped. When abroad, they praise and follow all rules and regulations but once back home, their original instinct takes over. It is so widespread that nowadays, even traffic police personnel ignore the violators or at the most, capture them in mobile cameras. Hence, walking even on footpaths is no longer safe since ubiquitous two-wheelers can bump into you, from behind mostly. Traffic anywhere in India is a testimony to this national malady. Therefore, those criticising the British for enslaving India will find it quite unnerving that in Pimpri-Chinchwad in Pune, some foreign nationals were seen stopping two-wheeler riders who were using the footpath and urging them to follow traffic rules. The incident has been recorded by Pune Mirror at Rakshak Chowk in the Pimple Nilakh area. Following its ‘X’ post, there is a barrage of angry retorts. One respondent says, “When outsiders have to teach us how to use our own roads, it’s a serious question mark on our civic sense. Rules aren’t optional, they reflect basic respect for others.” Politician Satyajit Tambe is equally critical. He has lamented in his post, “If foreigners feel the need to point out basic traffic rules, it highlights how urgently we need better civic sense on our roads.” Dr Neeraj Sharma is more direct when he writes, “It’s a shame that we need foreigners to come and teach us civility. I have repeatedly said that we need to change our primary education syllabus and add Civics and civility to it rather than reading about the Battle of Plassey.” The post hopefully serves some useful purpose.

Congress MLC Pradnya Satav’s decision to resign her post and join the BJP has wider ramifications than was initially understood. It is now clear that the most affected individual by her abrupt change of loyalty is none other than Rahul Gandhi. Although the state Congress failed to persuade her to stay over in the party, Pradnya decided to join the ruling party since she felt that no developmental work will be possible in her Hingoli area unless there is a strong political support. Unfortunately for the Congress party, its last leader from Marathwada, former CM Ashok Chavan, is now a BJP MP while his daughter is elected to the legislative assembly on that party’s ticket. Pradnya’s husband Rajiv Satav was a close confidant of Rahul Gandhi, who had entrusted him to handle the last assembly election in Gujarat. In that election, the Congress had won 77 seats, a record in recent times, against the BJP’s 99. After Rajiv’s untimely demise in 2021 in the Covid pandemic, the Congress party sent Pradnya to the state legislative council, a gesture to pay homage to her husband. However, over the past three years, Pradnya realised the importance of political backing and has decided to join the saffron outfit. With her decision, Rahul Gandhi’s leadership limitations have once again been exposed. Nonetheless, on her part, Pradnya has praised Rahul and Sonia Gandhi. But that will be her swan song for the Congress, it is now clear.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee’s latest attack on GST has exposed visible strain between her and the Chief Financial Adviser and former Finance Minister Dr Amit Mitra. She has questioned his role in backing the indirect tax regime and blamed the Centre for substantial losses to the state. She accused the Centre of collecting GST on behalf of states while withholding their legitimate share, alleging West Bengal has been deprived of Rs 20,000 crore. In an unusually direct reference to her adviser, Mamata questioned Dr Mitra’s support for GST during its formulation and rollout, when he chaired the drafting committee and advocated a uniform tax structure as economically beneficial. She said his position must now be explained in light of continued deductions from GST revenues and the scale of losses claimed by the state. Dr Mitra has pointed to parliamentary statements in which the Centre acknowledged GST fraud amounting to Rs 2 lakh crore. Mamata has countered that while the figure has been officially stated, there is no credible evidence establishing the actual scale of fraud, raising doubts over whether GST has resulted in net gains or losses for states. The remarks come weeks after Mamata publicly admitted that her government erred in accepting GST. She also said that during the GST rollout, Dr Mitra explained the concept of a uniform tax structure to her, an explanation she has since described as misguided, adding that it was based on this understanding that the TMC became the first party to support GST. The public questioning of Mitra highlights growing tensions within the state’s economic leadership amid intensifying Centre-state fiscal confrontations.

The BJP leadership had to recently redeploy Union Commerce Minister Piyush Goyal once again for handling Tamil Nadu assembly polls. This was apparently being done on request from the Tamil Nadu BJP unit. Even NDA ally — AIADMK chief Edappadi Palaniswami – had conveyed to top BJP leader and Home Minister Amit Shah that Goyal should be in charge of the state. Initially, the party had assigned senior leader Baijayant Panda and Union Minister Murlidhar Mohol to handle the southern state. Party sources felt Goyal had been a good election manager during the Lok Sabha polls and was quite hands on. TN BJP leaders also found MoS  Mohol was too distracted and not taking interest in Chennai affairs. So TN BJP chief Nainar Nagendran rushed to Delhi and lobbied with central leadership to deploy Goyal once again so that BJP can give good results in the state. Nainar had cited the experience of state BJP during Lok Sabha polls. Yielding to local demand, the central BJP leadership tweaked its assignments for the poll-bound states. Goyal was given Tamil Nadu charge and Panda was given Assam. The responsibility of winning back Assam assembly elections will anyway largely lie with incumbent CM Himanta Biswas Sarma. 

With the Election Commission releasing West Bengal’s draft electoral rolls following the SIR exercise, which saw over 58 lakh voters removed across the state on grounds including death and migration, and voter profiles redrawn across districts and border belts ahead of the 2026 assembly elections, there is a disquiet in the ruling Trinamool Congress. What has particularly upset West Bengal CM Mamata Banerjee is voter deletion in her Bhabanipur constituency – nearly 44,787 voters have been deleted. The CM is also surprised that no complaints are forthcoming since the draft rolls were published. That is why the TMC leadership decided to deploy its booth-level agents for a fresh, door-to-door verification of deleted voters’ names in her constituency. Bhabanipur had 206,295 voters as of January 2025. The newly published draft rolls list has 161,509 names. TMC leaders are particularly upset over a large number of voters being marked “dead”, “shifted” or “absent”. “The party leadership made it clear that no valid voter’s name should be deleted under any circumstances. Every deleted name must be physically verified,” a TMC source said. Bhabanipur is a dense urban seat with many residents originally from Uttar Pradesh, Bihar and Odisha. Mamata is also surprised that maximum deletion of voters, 74,533 has happened in Chowringhee constituency of her close friend Naina Bandhopadhya. In contrast, voter deletion from Nandigram — from where she lost – is just 10,550. The seat is now represented by her BJP rival Suvendu Adhikari. Reacting to names deleted in the SIR exercise, BJP leader Amit Malviya says the process has revealed that TMC chief Mamata Banerjee has stayed in power due to votes cast in the names of illegal Bangladeshis and Rohingyas.

Even a Kollywood super hero takes his vulnerability seriously. TVK chief Vijay’s mega meeting on September 27 at Karur where 41 people died in the stampede must be rankling him. Vijay just pulled the drawbridge across his Panaiyur residential moat, and stayed unavailable, licking his wounds and fearing the worst for his fledgling party. But TN being TN, politics and the election run up are unfolding at a furious pace. Vijay too broke his slumber and planned yet another mega meet…this time in Erode. This time he wasn’t taking any chances. The venue had 40 CCTV cameras, 24 ambulances, 70 doctors on call, supported by 120 nurses, 200 water tanks, with canned water at every point, 3 fire engines and 60 acres as a parking area. Former AIADMK heavyweight points man, AS Sengottaiyan turned Vijay’s GPS and capo di, took over to run the mega event. Having been a confidante of late MGR and JJ, Sengottaiyan is a veteran of political manoeuvring and masterful optics. Is he testing Sengottaiyan’s organisational skills? Even as Vijay was ready to preside over the sea of followers, a bike gang driving rashly crashed headlong …fortunately no loss. The adrenaline run cinema gang escaped with injuries. Vijay, with his confidence boosted, is planning the next meet. Gathering huge crowds is impressive but can this pole-vault him to the top?

The  impact of actor-politician TVK chief Vijay, who held his second rally in Tamil Nadu’s Erode district on December 18 afternoon — his first in the state since 41 people died in a stampede in Karur on September 27 — is such that it is  already making top DMK leaders rethink their election  strategies. With Vijay already setting the tone of his campaign for next year’s Assembly election by borrowing from late AIADMK supremo J Jayalalithaa’s lexicon and calling the ruling DMK as “thiya shakti” or “evil” forces, the top leadership one hears is scouting for safer assembly seats for the 2026 assembly elections. Both his Erode and Puducherry rallies had drawn such massive crowds, that the DMK leadership does not want to take any chance. It is being said that incumbent chief minister MK Stalin, is already toying with the idea of moving to his son Udhayanidhi’s seat– Chepauk-Thiruvallikeni. At present, Stalin represents the Kolathur State Assembly seat. It is another matter that he was recently seen visiting the area. It is also one of the six state legislative assembly constituencies that is part of Chennai North Lok Sabha seat. As for deputy CM Udhayanidhi, he is reportedly toying with the idea of contesting the Tiruvarur seat—the legacy seat in Thanjavur that his grandfather Karunanidhi had won in 2016 assembly polls recording his 13th straight victory since 1957.

Has sibling rivalry caught up with the Gandhis? According to Union Minister Ravneet Singh Bittu, a former Congress leader now in the BJP, insists that the Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi set off for a visit to Germany in midst of Parliament’s Winter Session only after his Parliament speech on electoral reforms went bust and was compared with his sister Priyanka’s speech on Vande Mataram. Sources say the minister spoke about the sibling rift to give context to negative statements being made by the LoP about India — such as “Manufacturing is declining in India” in Germany. It is being said Rahul is apparently upset that his speech made no impact while Priyanaka’s created a buzz. Yet, there are few takers for stories of rifts between the Gandhi siblings. Younger sibling Priyanka regularly defends Rahul against the BJP’s political attacks. She had also fiercely defended Rahul’s trip to Germany. While it is true that both Rahul and mother Sonia have ensured that Priyanka does not have any role in the Congress, party sources say Priyanka has been micromanaging floor protests in her brother’s absence in the last few days. On the penultimate day of the Session, Priyanka used Question Hour to meet Transport Minister Nitin Gadkari to sort out issues about her Wayanad constituency. However, too many disruptions cost Priyanka an opportunity to speak about air pollution in Delhi/NCR. The Lok Sabha was adjourned as soon as the house passed modified MNREGA or the new Viksit Bharat Guarantee for Rozgar and Ajeevika Mission (Gramin) (VB-G RAM G) Bill, 2025.  The House had sat till wee hours — till about 1.30 am — discussing the bill. Speaker Om Birla rejected Opposition pleas to send the Bill to a Standing Committee; After all, 99 speakers participated in the discussion.

West Bengal chief minister Mamata Banerjee sacked state Sports & Youth Welfare Minister Aroop Biswas following the inept handling of the legendary footballer Lionel Messi event which turned ugly leading to chaos and vandalism at the Salt Lake stadium. The CM who has instituted an inquiry will handle his portfolio for now. Thousands of fans had bought costly tickets but failed to get a glimpse of GOAT Messi. The visuals of the vandalised parts of the stadium shown worldwide embarrassed the ruling Trinamool Congress. Biswas came under sharp criticism after images of him accompanying Messi at the stadium went viral, with football fans alleging that he remained in close proximity to the footballer during the event. Though Biswas wrote to Banerjee expressing his willingness to step down till the probe was completed, sources said the chief minister did not speak to him during two high-level meetings. Some of his associates had expected the controversy to be eclipsed by the publication of the draft voter list. The inquiry committee submitted its preliminary report to Nabanna on Monday (Dec 15) night. Acting on its recommendations, Chief Secretary Manoj Pant on Tuesday issued show-cause notices to DGP,police commissioner, principal secretary etc.  Apparently, there has been a turf war between two TMC ministers — Sujit Bose and Aroop Biswas –over access to Messi. Bose has deep roots in Bengal’s sports administration and enjoys high visibility at major events, while Biswas, as Sports Minister, has overseen marquee tournaments, giving him clear institutional authority over visiting athletes. Beyond sports, the two are also perceived as rivals in Durga Puja — Sujit’s Sribhumi versus Aroop’s Suruchi Sangha. While Sujit’s interactions with Messi unfolded in the controlled confines of the hotel, Aroop sought to reclaim visibility at the stadium, where mass crowds and public attention mattered more. As a result the public anger focused on Biswas and Didi had to...

Delhi BJP leaders had mixed feelings when in February 2025 PM Modi zeroed in on a first term MLA from Shalimar Bagh, Rekha Gupta, as Delhi CM – over looking at claims of more worthy CM hopefuls. It was felt perhaps Modi was scripting a different kind of BJP administration for the national capital. Not the sort that Delhi has seen in the 90s either under Madanlal Khurana, Sahib Singh Verma or Sushma Swaraj. Ten months later with Delhi and the National Capital Region battling a toxic AQI has Rekha Gupta’s elevation helped? Apparently not. The incumbent CM who has risen from the ranks — from a combative councillor to CM is increasingly proving to be a disappointment, say BJP sources. It is isn’t just her attempt to oversimplify toxic AQI of Delhi with her remarks like “AQI is a temperature that can be measured with any instrument”. Such inane remarks have so embarrassed everyone in the Delhi BJP that party leaders simply retreated into a shell. After all, no one could be seen contradicting her. What saved Delhi was Lionel Messi’s visit. It wasn’t until the football star reached Arun Jaitley Stadium CM Gupta was greeted with “AQI, AQI” chants that her Govt was forced to speak up and of course swing into action. Her environment minister Manjinder Singh Sirsa finally issued a public apology while asserting that ‘it is impossible for any government to clean up the entire pollution in 9-10 months’. Meanwhile it is being said Rekha Gupta functions a lot like women sarpanches — who authorise their husbands to act on their behalf. Delhi CM’s husband is reportedly present at official meetings. Not so much to influence her decisions but probably to enable her decisions.

The ICC World Twenty20 is only under two months away; So soon, may ask the passionate Indian cricket fan. For it was only in June 2024 that Rohit Sharma’s men in blue team stunned South Africa in the final at Bridgetown. Thanks to an extraordinary catch taken by Suryakumar Yadav around the straight boundary line, India could cause a turnaround in the match that had drifted South Africa’s way. The same Yadav is almost certain to lead the campaign in the February-March 2026 competition to be held in India and Sri Lanka. Yadav has not been in good nick for many matches, the selection committee has no other option though, but to zero in on Yadav to helm the team that will have Shubman Gill as vice-captain. India’s trump cards for some months have been Abhishek Sharma and Tilak Varma and the mystery spinner Varun Chakravarthy, but the focus will be on Gill and Yadav who form the core of the Indian team’s batting — being among the top-4. Yadav, clearly has been protected by his leadership that has won many internationals, including the Asia Cup, and lost a few. India has not lost a series since August 2023, winning in South Africa and Australia; its record in this phase is 31 wins including the two against South Africa in the ongoing series and losing just six. The team has won in different conditions, which is what gives credence to the belief that Yadav’s team can really have a good crack at the title that it won in 2024 after 17 years. In a short time left from its opening match against the USA in Mumbai on February 7 next year, the team will have to fix a few glitches.

The box‑office phenomenon around Ranveer Singh’s Dhurandhar has triggered an exhibition pivot: cinemas in Mumbai added a 12:45 am show and Pune introduced a 12:20 am screening, while several chains pushed regular schedules well past midnight into the early morning — a programming move usually reserved for only the most in‑demand releases. The reason being the consistently packed halls across key urban centres so the exhibitors risk these unconventional slots: audiences showed up in numbers that justified the supply. Dhurandhar’s commercial trajectory underscores that demand. The action drama crossed the Rs 300 crore mark within nine days, becoming one of the fastest films this year to join the milestone club. On its ninth day, the film recorded its highest single‑day collection of Rs 53 crore, taking the domestic cumulative to an estimated Rs 303 crore. Crucially, the Saturday spike — bigger than the previous weekend’s — and the surge in midnight attendance indicate momentum driven by word‑of‑mouth rather than opening weekend hype alone. Social media amplified that momentum. Memes, reels and trending soundtracks turned scenes and performances into viral currency, while controversies — including bans in several overseas markets — generated additional headlines and curiosity. What began as mixed critical response flipped into mass enthusiasm as online chatter translated into footfalls, proving how digital buzz can reshape a film’s theatrical destiny. If sustained, the success of late‑night Dhurandhar shows could set a precedent in Indian exhibition: when demand exists, exhibitors will extend screens and hours, turning midnight slots from novelty to viable revenue streams.

Odisha chief minister Mohan Charan Majhi courts seems to have landed in a bit of a controversy over his decision to opt for an official Type 7 VIP bungalow in Delhi’s posh 2 Teen Murti locality – close to the residence of the Union Cabinet Minister Dharmendra Pradhan. Majhi is the first CM from Odisha to opt for a luxury type of residence in Delhi. Earlier, Odisha CMs while visiting the Capital stayed either at Odisha Bhawan (now officially closed for redevelopment) or stayed at the central government accommodation or at designated hotels. Majhi’s VIP culture has set tongues wagging. BJD, the Opposition party led by Naveen Patnaik, has taken a potshot at Majhi’s VIP culture and questioned the need for a luxurious bungalow in Delhi even though it has been officially allotted to him. The general ask is: why is Majhi who comes from a humble tribal background fostering VIP culture? And many say this is a wasteful expenditure since CM Majhi is not staying in Delhi permanently. Questions are also being asked about the security cost — 30 Odisha police platoons along with bullet proof vehicles have been deployed to look after CM’s security. By opting to have a permanent resident close to Dharmendra Pradhan’s house, political commentators now ask is it a preparatory signal for the next election?

The Thiruvananthapuram Corporation victory seems to have infused some life into BJP’s mission to break the last frontiers that are Kerala and Tamil Nadu. With the win under their belt, they have now named three Union ministers for talks with the AIADMK regarding seat sharing among the alliance with Piyush Goyal to lead the panel. The AIADMK, under Edappadi K Palaniswami has hit upon a formula to please the BJP by which it will take 160 seats and leave the other 74 for the allies to decide. The BJP will have to juggle with seat demands rising from the likes of Anbumani Ramadoss who brings his branch of the caste party PMK and the rump elements of the old undivided AIADMK like Sasikala, her confidant O Panneerselvam and her nephew TTV Dhinakaran and even the late actor Vijayakanth’s DMDK. But 74 is a good number with the BJP likely to keep at least half that give the rest to try and bring about a coalition of parties to boost the alliance’s vote share. Even so, Tamil Nadu may prove a tougher nut to crack than Kerala when it comes to letting in the BJP, which is considered a north Indian party trying to break its way into the south. The election scene has already got busier this season with Vijay’s TVK entering the fray to make it a genuine three-way contest.