Chhattisgarh polls: Rahul has forgotten his promises, reminds me of film 'Ghajini', mocks Fadnavis
Raipur (PTI): Maharashtra Deputy Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis on Monday said rallies of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reminded him of Hindi film "Ghajini", in which the main character suffers from short term memory loss, as the latter has forgotten promises he made in the run up to the 2018 Chhattisgarh Assembly polls.
Addressing a press conference, the senior BJP leader took a swipe at the ruling Congress in the state and alleged tainted money from the liquor scam was being invested in the elections.
"After seeing some rallies of Rahul Gandhi and Chief Minister Bhupesh Baghel, I am reminded of the (2008) film Ghajini. They are suffering from memory loss. They have forgotten what they promised in the past (in the 2018 poll campaign) and have started lying afresh," Fadnavis claimed.
Fadnavis claimed the Baghel government helped in the making of fake holograms, that are put on liquor bottles, and earned Rs 2,000 crore, which is now being invested in the elections.
"People are asking about the Congress' promise of prohibition but they (party) don't remember it anymore. The Congress promised to start an air ambulance, but are unable to run normal ambulance services," he said.
Referring to the alleged PSC (Public Service Commission) scam, Fadnvais taunted that Chhattisgarh is the first state where one needs to be the children of politicians and bureaucrats to get jobs.
"We had heard someone had consumed chara (fodder) in Bihar. But in Chhattisgarh they consumed 'gobar'," he said targeting the Baghel government over alleged corruption in the cow dung procurement scheme.
"Modi government had launched welfare schemes for the poor but the Baghel government stopped the construction of houses for them. They (Congress government) claim they will bring new schemes for the construction of houses, which is never going to happen," he added.
On Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi's promise of giving subsidy of Rs 500 on LPG in Chhattisgarh, Fadnvais said the "Modi ji is already giving subsidy of Rs 400".
They (Congress) procure paddy from farmers for which they take Rs 2200 (per quintal) from the Narendra Modi government but then take credit for the entire procurement, Fadnavis alleged.
Earlier, Fadnavis addressed an election rally in Dhamtari city and accused the Baghel government of indulging in scams.
Assembly polls in Chhattisgarh will be held in two phases on November 7 and 17, while results will be declared on December 3.
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Real Madrid fines Valverde and Tchouaméni half a million euros each for altercation
Barcelona (AP): Real Madrid slapped players Federico Valverde and Aurélien Tchouaméni with half-a-million-euro ($588,000) fines on Friday for their altercation during practice.
The massive fines came a day after the midfielders tussled when the team trained. Valverde said in a post on social media on Thursday that no punches were thrown. But Valverde knocked his head on a table and he suffered a small cut that required a brief hospital visit.
On social media, Valverde initially called it a “meaningless fight” with a teammate and said “everything has been blown out of proportion."
His employers, however, considered it a significant enough breach of team discipline to nail both Valverde and Tchouaméni with fines that bite even the bank account of a top soccer player. The half-a-million euro penalties reflect the reputational damage the club was enduring in a chaotic end to a disappointing season.
In a statement, the 15-time European champion said its disciplinary action was concluded after both players expressed to the club “their complete remorse for what happened and apologized to one another.”
Madrid added they also apologized to their teammates, the coaching staff and club supporters, as well as showing their willingness to accept whatever disciplinary action the club deemed “opportune.”
Tchouaméni was back training with Madrid on Friday, two days before they play at Barcelona in a clasico. Madrid has to win otherwise Barcelona will be crowned La Liga champion.
After being notified of the fine, he posted a public apology to the club and its fans on social media.
“What happened this week in training is unacceptable,” Tchouaméni wrote. "I say this while thinking about the example we are expected to set for young people, whether in football or at school.
“Above all, I am sorry for the image we projected of the club.”
Valverde was not at practice due to the head knock.
Both players are set to play in the World Cup next month, with Tchouaméni playing for France and Valverde for Uruguay.
Chaotic end to a poor season
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The run-in between the players, who for seasons have played side by side in Madrid's midfield, came after they argued this week in previous training sessions. But tempers boiled over on Thursday. Spanish media was rife with reports that the players previously disagreed over the club's decision to let coach Xabi Alonso go after just months on the job.
It was not the only altercation involving Madrid players during training this week. Álvaro Carreras confirmed he was in a “minor” incident with a teammate. Spanish media said he and fellow defender Antonio Rüdiger got into a scuffle.
Álvaro Arbeloa, the coach who was promoted from Madrid's reserve team when Alonso was fired in January, will face tough questions on what went wrong inside the changing room when he gives a press conference on Saturday ahead of the clasico at Camp Nou.
Madrid is facing a second consecutive campaign without a major trophy amid rumors in the Spanish media that club president Florentino Pérez is considering bringing back Jose Mourinho to straighten out his underperforming team.
