The State Election Commission (SEC) has called for law amendments to expand the postal ballot facility for local body elections in Kerala to include voters above 80 years and those engaged in essential services and to introduce three additional qualifying dates for voter enrolment. 

The BJP, which is yet to secure an Assembly victory in Karaikal district, is seeking to achieve a breakthrough in this election by contesting three of the five constituencies, up from its usual one or two seats in previous polls, signalling growing organisational ambition and confidence in the region.

As part of the N.R. Congress-led NDA in Puducherry, the BJP is contesting Karaikal North and Neravy–T.R. Pattinam against DMK candidates, while taking on the Congress in Thirunallar.

Tucked away in Tiruchi district, the Thuraiyur (SC) Assembly constituency may not command the glare of urban seats, yet it mirrors the deeper currents shaping Tamil Nadu’s political pulse. Predominantly agrarian and reserved for Scheduled Castes, the constituency stands at the confluence of rural livelihoods, welfare expectations, and shifting political aspirations, presenting a familiar mix of potential and persistent gaps.

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With political parties increasingly favouring social and electronic media to canvass for votes, the demand for traditional advertising such as billboards, cutouts and stencils continues to nurture a small ecosystem where a talent for art is as important as engineering skill.

In his small shop in Tiruchi’s Anjuman Bazaar, K. Shanmugam, 52, displays a diverse array of stencils featuring the names and symbols of political parties that will be contesting the State Legislative Assembly elections next month.

A worker in the tinkering trade since the age of eight, Mr. Shanmugam is an expert in cutting out letters and artistic details by hand on galvanised iron sheets with the help of specially crafted blades.

Kerala has a little over 2.44 lakh voters in the persons with disabilities (PwD) category, as per the updated electoral roll published by the Election Commission of India (EC).

The number represents 0.9% of the total electorate this time.

Of the 2,44,927 PwD voters, 1,37,512 are men, 1,07,410 are women, and five are transgender voters. Kerala had over 1.33 lakh voters in this category for the 2021 Assembly polls and 2.6 lakh voters during the 2024 Lok Sabha polls.

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The DMK has fielded a mix of old war horses and new faces as its candidates for the Assembly constituencies in the central region.

All Ministers from the region, including the party Principal Secretary K.N.Nehru (Tiruchi West), Anbil Mahesh Poyyamozhi (Tiruverumbur), S.Regupathy (Tirumayam), S.S.Sivasankar (Kunnam), Siva V.Meyyanathan (Alangudi), Govi.Chezhiaan (Thiruvidaimarudur) and T.R.B.Rajaa (Mannargudi), have been renominated from their respective constituencies.

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The Trinamool Congress slammed Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday (March 28, 2026) with a counter to his “chargesheet” against the Mamata Banerjee government, accusing the BJP of trying to polarise the people of poll-bound West Bengal and evade accountability for its own record on a host of issues, including women’s safety.

Hours after Mr. Shah’s press conference here, the incumbent TMC questioned the BJP-led Centre over the prolonged violence in Manipur, women’s safety in BJP-ruled states and the Centre’s handling of illegal immigration.

Senior TMC leaders Mahua Moitra, Bratya Basu and Kirti Azad held a joint press conference where they targeted the Union Home minister over his criticism of the TMC government on women’s safety. “Amit Shah is talking about women’s security. What is the condition of women’s safety in BJP-ruled states?” “Shah should first answer about violence in Manipur, which has bled continuously for the past three years,” TMC MP Moitra said.

- PTI

Thoothukudi: All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) candidate for the Thoothukudi Assembly constituency, S.T. Chellapandian, received a warm welcome at Thoothukudi Airport.

He said, “The AIADMK and its alliance parties will win in all the constituencies they are contesting and form the government. In particular, he confidently stated that he would win in the Thoothukudi Assembly constituency by a margin of 50,000 votes against his opponent.”

He further said that necessary measures would be taken to prevent water stagnation during the rainy season in the Thoothukudi constituency.

“We will not make false promises like the DMK, but we will certainly implement all the necessary development schemes for Thoothukudi,” he assured. - ANI

Coimbatore: Former AIADMK Minister S.P. Velumani expressed confidence that All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) would secure a landslide victory in the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly polls. 

Addressing a press conference in Coimbatore, he said, “AIADMK and its alliance candidates would secure victory”, claiming that the party would win 210 constituencies and that Edappadi K. Palaniswami would become Chief Minister. 

Referring to the legacy of M.G. Ramachandran and J. Jayalalithaa, he highlighted that the party has announced the names of its candidates for the upcoming Tamil Nadu Assembly elections under the leadership of the party’s general secretary Edapaddi K. Palaniswami, except for Chennai. - ANI

Chennai: Congress MP from Karur constituency, S. Jothimani, has alleged a total lack of transparency in the party’s constituency selection process as part of DMK-led alliance in Tamil Nadu for the April 23 Assembly election, claiming the interests of the party have been “completely compromised”.

“There’s no transparency in the party’s constituency selection. Our view that seats should be chosen after detailed discussion and with transparency was rejected by those in charge,” Ms. Jothimani said in a strongly-worded social media post on March 27. 

The Congress was allotted 28 seats in the DMK-led alliance in Tamil Nadu. The MP’s outburst comes at a time when major political players in the State, including the DMK and the AIADMK, are finalising their strategies for the upcoming electoral battle.

Ms. Jothimani accused the State leadership of conducting the seat-sharing and selection process in a “highly secretive manner,” ignoring calls for detailed discussions and an open approach. - PTI

Palakkad: Kerala Chief Minister Pinarayi Vijayan rejected as “baseless” senior Congress leader Ramesh Chennithala’s allegation of a ₹700 crore scam in the procurement of software for primary cooperative societies.

Mr. Vijayan, at a press conference in Palakkad, also denied again the Congress-led UDF’s allegations of a BJP-CPI(M) deal in Kerala in the run-up to the Assembly polls on April 9.

He said that the UDF and Opposition leader V.D. Satheesan think they can say anything or spread lies and claimed that the people will not be swayed by such tactics. - PTI

Thiruvananthapuram: BJP Kerala general secretary S. Suresh alleged that Election Commission officials, including the State CEO, were colluding with the government and the ruling CPI(M) to “undermine” free and fair polls in the State.

Addressing a press conference in Thiruvananthapuram, Mr. Suresh referred to the recent row in which a BJP seal was found on a document issued by the Election Commission to political parties, leading to the suspension of an official. Mr. Suresh identified the suspended officer as Jaisal B. Aziz, alleging that he is associated with an NGO union in the State Secretariat.

He claimed that the officer, who had recently joined service, was deputed to the Election Commission owing to his alleged links with organisations such as the DYFI and SFI. - PTI

Kolkata: “The operationalisation of tribunals to hear appeals from voters whose names were missing from the electoral rolls during the SIR exercise in West Bengal is yet to be finalised,” a senior official said.

“The Supreme Court has directed that those whose names are deleted will have the option to approach tribunals. However, no final decision has been taken yet on when and where these tribunals will start functioning,” Chief Electoral Officer Manoj Agarwal said.

He said the State government has proposed certain locations for setting up the tribunals, while the Calcutta High Court has suggested the Judicial Academy at New Town as a possible venue.

“The West Bengal government has identified spaces in every district for the tribunals. Now, the High Court will make a decision,” Mr. Agarwal said. - PTI

The Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (AMMK) has demanded that the nation’s highest civilian honour, the Bharat Ratna, be given posthumously to the leader of the Forward Bloc U. Muthuramalinga Thevar and former Chief Minister Jayalalithaa. It also made a request to name Madurai international airport after Thevar. 

The demands formed the highlights of the 32-page poll manifesto launched by the party general secretary T.T.V. Dhinakaran. - The Hindu Bureau

Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Saturday (March 28, 2026) sharpened the BJP’s campaign pitch for the West Bengal Assembly polls by publishing a ‘charge sheet’ against the TMC Government and framing the election as a battle not merely for the state, but for the country’s security.

Launching a broadside at the ruling TMC in Kolkata, Mr. Shah alleged that during its 15-year rule, the state had become the country’s “principal corridor for infiltration, appeasement politics and border insecurity”.

“The Bengal election is important not only for the state but for the entire country. The security of the country is, in a way, linked to the Bengal election,” Mr. Shah said.

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Trinamool Congress (TMC) supremo Mamata Banerjee on Saturday (March 28, 2026) asserted that the BJP will lose power in the country in its attempt to destroy West Bengal.

Addressing a poll rally in Raniganj, she announced that after winning the West Bengal Assembly elections for the fourth consecutive time, she would bring all political parties along to “capture” Delhi. “If the BJP comes to power in the State, they will use bulldozers and throw everyone out,” Ms. Banerjee claimed.

“By attempting to destroy Bengal, the BJP will lose power across the country,” the Chief Minister asserted at the rally in the mining town of Paschim Bardhaman district.

Accusing the Election Commission of working at the behest of the saffron party to delete voters’ names in the Special Intensive Revision (SIR) of electoral rolls, Ms. Banerjee said, “There must be a Lakshman Rekha, but the BJP is crossing all limits.” “SIR will be your death knell,” she warned the BJP. Referring to clashes during the Ram Navami procession in Murshidabad’s Raghunathganj, she claimed that the administration took no action. - PTI

The Avadi Assembly constituency in Tiruvallur district spans Avadi, Pattabiram, and Thiruninravur, and comprises industrial workers, defence personnel, and a growing middle-class population.

The Attur (SC) constituency, located 50 km away from Salem town, is predominantly an agricultural area for tapioca cultivation and Attur has dozens of sago factories. The constituency was represented by the AIADMK (1991, 2001, 2011, 2016, and 2021) and the Congress (1962, 1977, 1980, 1984, and 2006) five times each and by the DMK four times (1967, 1971, 1989, and 1996).

On upcoming Assembly elections, CPI Leader D. Raja says, “... BJP is very desperate somehow to win elections in the forthcoming elections in different states. Modi himself has declared that after Bihar, his focus will be to win elections in Bengal to free Bengal from Jungle Raj. But what is happening in Uttar Pradesh? What is happening in Madhya Pradesh and other BJP-ruled states? People are looking at how the BJP rule has become misrule.

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AMMK leader TTV Dhinakaran announces 120-points party manifesto, includes retrieving Katchatheevu, making ‘Tamil’ as official language.

Pradyut Bordoloi, a two-term MP from Assam who recently crossed over to the BJP, has alleged that he felt neglected, isolated and unwelcome in the Congress.

A Congress member for more than five decades and the chairman of the manifesto committee for the Assam Assembly polls, Mr. Bordoloi is contesting the State election on a BJP ticket from Dispur.

In an interview with PTI, Mr. Bordoloi claimed that a succession of wounds had built up, and it perhaps started during the Congress organisational election in 2022.

He alleged that he was facing humiliation in the Congress and was sidelined after he supported Shashi Tharoor’s candidature for the party president’s post. - PTI

Filmmaker and actor Sundar C has been announced as the NDA candidate for Madurai Central. He will be contesting on behalf of New Justice Party, the outfit’s chief A.C. Shanmugam announced on Saturday (March 28, 2026). Sundar C is known for directing Kamal Haasan starrer Anbe Sivam and Rajinikanth starrer Arunachalam. He has also acted and produced several Tamil movies. He is married to actor and BJP leader Khushbu. 

DMK Minister (Information Technology portfolio) Palanivel Thiaga Rajan is the incumbent MLA of Madurai Central constituency. 

With Puducherry gearing up for yet another election, scheduled for April 9, it would be interesting to see how the Union Territory has voted in the past three Assembly elections.

Congress MP from Karur constituency, S Jothimani, has alleged a total lack of transparency in the party’s constituency selection process as part of DMK-led alliance in Tamil Nadu for the April 23 Assembly election, claiming the interests of the party have been “completely compromised”.

“There’s no transparency in the party’s constituency selection. Our view that seats should be chosen after detailed discussion and with transparency was rejected by those in charge,” Ms. Jothimani said in a strongly-worded social media post on March 27.- PTI

The Election Commission published the second supplementary list under the SIR of electoral rolls in West Bengal, an official said.

The poll panel, however, did not provide details on the total number of deletions or inclusions in the second list that was made public on Friday (March 27) night.

“The second list has been published. We cannot divulge anything more,” an EC official said.

Booth-wise lists were made available on the EC website around 11.30 p.m. on March 27, but the web pages containing data about deletions or inclusions could not be accessed due to some “technical glitches”, he said.- PTI

Loss of lives, crop raids, and destruction of farmlands due to human-wildlife conflicts dominate electioneering in at least one-fourth of the constituencies of Kerala that go to the polls next month. In Kozhikode, farmers have even fielded a candidate against State Forest Minister A.K. Saseendran to highlight their concerns.

Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi (VCK) founder Thol. Thirumavalavan on Friday (March 27) said negotiations had been successfully completed with the DMK to identify eight constituencies, including two general seats, for his party.