Assam Assembly’s seniormost MLA Patowary takes oath as pro-tem Speaker

The post-election political climate in Tamil Nadu turned upside down on Thursday (May 7, 2026) after the Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam leadership began toying with the idea of extending outside support to its arch-rival, the All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam — a prospect that would have been unthinkable till a week ago.Govt. formation LIVE updates - May 7In a related development, the Lok Bhavan said Governor Rajendra Vishwanath Arlekar invited Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam president C. Joseph Vijay and “explained that the requisite majority support in the Tamil Nadu Legislative Assembly, essential for forming the government, has not been established.”While Mr. Vijay and senior party leaders reached out to the DMK’s allies — the Communist Party of India, the CPI(M) and the Viduthalai Chiruthaigal Katchi, which have two seats each — DMK president M.K. Stalin too is learnt to have broached with these three parties the idea of backing an AIADMK-led government.Now clearly, the three parties hold the key to any further churn in Tamil Nadu politics. In fact, their combined support is crucial for both the TVK and the AIADMK to form a government.Currently, the TVK with the support of the five elected candidates of the Congress, effectively has 112 seats in the 234-member House after accounting for the legal mandate for Mr. Vijay to resign from one of his two seats.Should the AIADMK aspire to form a government without the support of the BJP’s lone representative, it would require the support of its other allies Pattali Makkal Katchi (4) and Amma Makkal Munnetra Kazhagam (1), in addition to that of the DMK (59), the Indian Union Muslim League (2), and the six seats of the CPI-CPI(M)-VCK combine. It would give the alliance 120 seats.Mr. Stalin, the outgoing Chief Minister who had initially rejected the proposal to back the AIADMK, reportedly yielded to pressure from second-line party leaders and invited CPI(M) State secretary P. Shanmugam, CPI State secretary M. Veerapandian, and VCK leader Thol. Thirumavalavan to his house for discussions. The DMK would not join the government, but the allies are free to take a decision on joining the government, he reportedly told them.‘Pressure from senior DMK leaders’Sources said some senior DMK leaders, including three senior outgoing Ministers, pressured Mr. Stalin to consider the option of backing the AIADMK. “Once Mr. Vijay forms the government, it will be difficult to unseat him for the next 10 to 15 years. The Dravidian parties have to take a decision to prevent such an eventuality,” a senior DMK leader said.The argument within the DMK is that, since Mr. Stalin would not be in the Assembly, the DMK and the AIADMK could evolve a common minimum programme and jointly run the government. It is against this backdrop that Mr. Stalin invited the Left leaders and Mr. Thirumavalavan for consultations. But, Mr. Stalin is learnt to have told them their stand would be his stand as well.While the two Communist parties sought time, stating their State committee meetings scheduled for Friday would take a final decision, Mr. Thirumavalavan indicated that he would follow the Communists’ stand.Meanwhile, a meeting of the newly elected DMK legislators held at Anna Arivalayam empowered Mr. Stalin to take an appropriate decision in light of the fractured electoral verdict, which failed to give any single party a majority.“As the State is not ready for another election, our objective is to ensure a stable government. At the same time, we are under compulsion to prevent communal forces that could disturb Dravidian ideals from gaining a foothold,” a resolution adopted at the meeting stated.The resolution further said that Tamil Nadu’s growth trajectory could be sustained only if the welfare schemes implemented by the DMK government over the last five years continued without interruption.“The meeting unanimously empowers the party leader to take an emergency decision, taking into consideration the prevailing political and

BJP workers celebrate the party’s win in the Assembly elections in West Bengal and Assam, in Visakhapatnam. | However, the elections also saw notable defeats for the sons of three former Chief Ministers, marking a significant shift in the State’s political landscape.Among those defeated was Gaurav Gogoi, the State Congress president and sitting Member of Parliament. Published - May 05, 2026 12:24 pm IST

Home Elections Tamil Nadu recorded a historic 85.1% voter turnout in the Assembly polls, while Puducherry led with 91.23%. Assam saw a turnout of 85.91%, and Kerala registered 78.27%. Updated - April 29, 2026 07:42 pm IST A polling official marks a voter's finger with indelible ink during the second and final phase of the West Bengal Assembly elections, at a polling station in Kolkata, Wednesday, April 29, 2026. | The pollsters also forecast a return to power for the AINRC-led NDA government in Puducherry. Earlier, Tamil Nadu recorded a historic 85.1% voter turnout in the Assembly polls, while Puducherry led with 91.23%. Assam saw a turnout of 85.91%, and Kerala registered 78.27%.The counting of votes for all five Assemblies - West Bengal, Tamil Nadu, Puducherry, Kerala and Assam - will be taken up on May 4.Follow the live updates hereApril 29, 2026 19:41 NDA ahead in Puducherry, DMK-Congress trails in projections; TVK likely to win 2–4 seatsIn Puducherry, Axis My India predicted 16-20 seats for the NDA and 6-8 for the DMK-Congress. It said the TVK is likely to get 2-4 seats in the assembly. There are 30 elected seats in Puducherry.-PTIApril 29, 2026 19:38 UDF ahead in contest with LDF in Kerala; NDA marginal presenceIn Kerala, Axis My India forecast that the UDF would get 78-90 seats, LDF 49-62 and NDA 0-3.People’s Pulse predicted that the Congress-led UDF would get 75-85 seats, the LDF 55-65 and the NDA 0-3.Matrize forecast 60-65 seats for the LDF, 70-75 seats for the UDF and 3-5 seats for the NDA. Kerala Assembly has a total of 140 seats, with the magic mark being 71.-PTIApril 29, 2026 19:28 Exit polls project return of Stalin-led alliance in Tamil NaduIn their projections via exit polls, the pollsters on Wednesday projected the incumbent CM M.K. Stalin-led Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (DMK) alliance winning Tamil Nadu in the 2026 Assembly elections.The exit poll by People Pulse has projected 125-145 Assembly seats in DMK’s corner, while placing Nationalist Democratic Alliance-backed (NDA) All India Anna Dravida Munnetra Kazhagam (AIADMK) with 65 to 80 seats of the total 234 Assembly seats in the State.Meanwhile, Vijay’s Tamilaga Vettri Kazhagam (TVK) is being projected to win merely two to six Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu as per People Pulse.According to exit poll projections by Matrize, DMK and allies are winning Tamil Nadu Assembly polls with 122-132, while AIADMK and allies are projected to win on 80 to 100 seats.Meanwhile, as per Matrize, TVK is projected to zero to six Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu.The exit poll by P-MARQ has projected 125-145 Assembly seats in DMK’s corner, while placing AIADMK with 60 to 70 seats of the total 234 Assembly seats in the State.Meanwhile, Vijay’s TVK is being projected to win merely one to six Assembly seats in Tamil Nadu as per P-MARQ.-ANIApril 29, 2026 19:19 Exit Polls project BJP edge in West Bengal, predict close contest with TMCIn their projections via exit polls, the pollsters project Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) winning West Bengal in the 2026 Assembly elections, whose polling concluded this evening.The exit poll by Chanakya Strategies has projected 150-160 Assembly seats in the BJP’s corner, while placing Mamata Banerjee-led Trinamool Congress (TMC) with 130-140 seats of the total 294 Assembly seats in the State.Meanwhile, other parties are being projected to win six to 10 Assembly seats in West Bengal as per Chanakya Strategies.According to exit poll projections by Matrize, the BJP is winning the West Bengal Assembly polls with 146-161, while TMC is projected to win 125 to 140 seats.-ANIApril 29, 2026 19:16 Exit polls predict BJP-led NDA victory in AssamBJP-led NDA is po