After 18 years in The Times of India and 38 years in Journalism based in Chennai, I now proudly declare I am a Senior Independent Journalist
Chennai
Joined March 2010
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Jaya Menon retweeted
Locked watchtowers, silent alarms, and barely any guards.
17 prisoners just escaped from Theni jail, exposing glaring flaws in the state’s prison system. The response? A security audit, new buildings, and shoot-on-sight orders for escapees.
Is a band-aid enough for a broken system?
Is it enough?🧵👇
Jaya Menon retweeted
Ruling TVK cleared its first electoral test, winning Madurantakam n Dharapuram bypolls, pushing its Assembly tally to 109. However, the victory margin offers a reality check.
Ex-AIADMK MLAs Maragatham Kumaravel and P Sathyabama retained their seats under TVK's banner, but their vote tallies barely grew despite a full-throttle campaign by CM Vijay and strong support from coalition partners.
AIADMK slipped to third while DMK took second place.
TVK holds the momentum, but falling well short of its projected 1-lakh margin shows the ruling party still has ground to cover to secure a simple majority. #TNElections #TVK
timesofindia.indiatimes.com/…
Jaya Menon retweeted
Tamil Nadu chief minister to attend World Economic Forum's annual Davos event in Jan, 2027
timesofindia.indiatimes.com/…
Jaya Menon retweeted
👶🏽 NEARLY EVERY BIRTH IN TN IS IN A HOSPITAL.
So why offer newborns gold?
💍 The State’s ₹756-crore scheme aims to bring expectant mothers back to govt facilities from private hospitals.
Doctors say: GOLD CANNOT REPLACE STAFF, BEDS, EQUIPMENT & RESPECTFUL CARE. #PublicHealth
Jaya Menon retweeted
A severe staff crunch has paralyzed TN's High-Level Committee on Union-State Relations.
With contracts for key researchers and the sole Tamil translator expiring without extension, drafting for Part 2 of the landmark autonomy report has ground to a complete halt.
Targeting the ruling TVK, LoP @Udhaystalin posted on X that the govt is deliberately freezing the panel out of fear: 'State rights cannot be won by posting reels. The govt must act now.'
timesofindia.indiatimes.com/…
Jaya Menon retweeted
A third front led by TVK sounds exciting on paper, but seat sharing and keeping allies intact will be the real trial. Let’s see if this reshuffles the deck or just creates noise!
#TNPolitics #TVK
A new political front enters the arena!
TVK leader & TN CM C. Joseph Vijay officially unveils the Secular Social Justice Victory Alliance alongside Congress, MDMK, VCK, and IUML.
Key takeaways from the announcement:
🔹 Core Pillars: Secularism, Social Justice, and Victory.
🔹 Coverage: Tamil Nadu & Puducherry, led by C. Joseph Vijay.
First Test: Upcoming bypolls in Dharapuram & Maduranthagam.
Aadhav Arjuna called it an "ideological front that goes beyond electoral politics" aimed at fighting communal forces. Tamil Nadu is now set for a major three-cornered contest alongside DMK and AIADMK fronts!
timesofindia.indiatimes.com/…
Jaya Menon retweeted
My first interview for @bbctamil with @sivaetb about #Tamilnadu
#assembly proceedings...
youtu.be/pU5R6aap8a8?si=UU3r…
Jaya Menon retweeted
CPI(M) has made its position very clear in this interview to Times of India today
The @tncpim refuses to participate in the alliance coordination meeting called by @TVKVijayHQ tomorrow.
Party chief Shanmugam says the party will extend only outside support and will not be part of the coordination mechanism.
CPI is also likely to take the same position, since both Left parties generally function as a block.
They will just remain in the ஆதரவு நிலை
Jaya Menon retweeted
ToI Chennai edition 122 pages today! The Hindu clocked 80. Not bad for a newspaper industry said to be in steep decline
Jaya Menon retweeted
Old schemes, new wrappers?
TVK’s new budget schemes line up almost 1:1 with existing DMK/AIADMK programs:
• Vetri Veedu ➡️ Kalaignar Kanavu Illam
• Annan Seer ➡️ Thalikku Thangam
• Kamarajar BF ➡️ CM Breakfast Scheme
Same policies, different branding?
#TVKBudget #TNPolitics
Jaya Menon retweeted
A Tirumala visit with an untabled agri budget document has landed TVK govt in controversy. Questions hv been raised over budget confidentiality, while AIADMK n even TVK ally CPM hv criticised it. @vinothravi11 tells TOI it was only the "budget preface, not the full document".
Jaya Menon retweeted
Minister @CTR_Nirmalkumar in an interview with TOI, says the TVK-led coalition is preparing a common minimum prg, n TVK will contest the upcoming local body polls with its allies.
Vijay's govt will deliver it's poll promises once it stabilises the systm,establish 0 corruption.
Jaya Menon retweeted
Karnataka calls off the #Cauvery meeting at the last minute!
@CMOTamilnadu was ready for Aug 3 talks on #CauveryWaterDispute & #Mekedatu, but DK Shivakumar told Vijay to back off citing "political tension."
TN isn't backing down, decides to go to SC.
#TN #Karnataka Politics
