May 2026

By M.R. Narayan Swamy After five days of tense, suspense-packed drama, Tamil superstar Vijay on Saturday was finally on the path to becoming the new chief minister of Tamil Nadu as he marshaled majority support before Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar. But Vijay supporters admitted that the 51-year-old actor-turned-politician had learnt some invaluable lessons in politics as his Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) desperately scouted for support since May 4 after falling short of a legislative m

CHENNAI — Whether one supported actor-turned-politician Vijay or not, almost everyone agreed on one thing: he had done the impossible. In a state where political power had rotated between two Dravidian parties for nearly six decades, Vijay emerged out of the blue, entered the political spectrum, and led his fledgling Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam to 108 seats, making it the single largest party in Tamil Nadu’s 234-member assembly. It was, by any measure, a democratic earthquake. Even his critics a

CHENNAI —On the evening of May 8, what began as an expected constitutional meeting for actor-turned-politician Vijay with the Governor to stake claim to form the government quickly turned into one of the biggest political dramas Tamil Nadu has witnessed in recent years. As of early Saturday morning, Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar had not invited Vijay, whose Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam won 108 seats in the 2026 state election and emerged as the single largest bloc in the 234-member Assembly,

By M.R. Narayan Swamy After days of uncertainty, movie heartthrob Vijay is finally set to be Tamil Nadu’s new chief minister after securing the support of three smaller parties, which helped him cross the magic number needed to form a government in the southern state. Losing no time, Vijay, 51, one of India’s highest-paid film stars, on Friday staked claim to form a government at his third meeting in as many days with Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar, who until now refused to let him take

VAVUNIYA, Sri Lanka — The chairman of the Vavuniya South Tamil Pradeshiya Sabha spent more than 1.7 million rupees of public money in five months on a rented luxury pickup truck, even as residents in the area say the council repeatedly cites budget constraints to explain crumbling roads, broken drains, and unlit streets. The expenditure came to light after the Pradeshiya Sabha was compelled to release the information following a Right to Information request, prompting scrutiny from residents an