Delhi HC imposes Rs 20K cost on Centre for not paying pension to 96-year-old freedom fighter
New Delhi, Nov 4: The Delhi High Court has imposed cost of Rs 20,000 on the central government for its "lackadaisical approach" in granting pension to a 96-year-old freedom fighter.
The high court said the case reflected "complete sad state of affairs" as freedom fighter Uttim Lal Singh was made to wait for over 40 years and run from pillar to post to get his rightful pension.
Justice Subramonium Prasad directed the Centre to pay Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension to Singh within 12 weeks with interest from 1980.
"It is painful to see the way in which the freedom fighters are being treated and the insensitivity shown by the Union of India towards freedom fighter who has fought for the independence of the country," the high court said.
"For the lackadaisical approach of the Union of India, this court deems it fit to impose costs of Rs 20,000 on the Union of India. Let the costs be paid to the petitioner within 6 weeks from today," the court said in its judgement passed on November 2.
It noted that the government of Bihar had recommended the petitioner's case and sent the original documents to the central government in March 1985. However, the documents got lost while they were with the central government.
The court noted that the Bihar government had verified the petitioner's name once again and sent a letter to the central government on July 14, 2022. The pension, however, was not released yet, it said.
"The inaction of the Central Government is actually an insult to the freedom fighter who was declared as a proclaimed offender and probably his entire land would have been attached in the proceedings initiated by the British Government. The very spirit of the pension scheme is being defeated by the stonewall approach of the Government of India which cannot be appreciated by this court," the high court said.
The court was dealing with a petition by Singh who said he was born in 1927 and had participated in the Quit India Movement and other movements associated with the freedom struggle.
It said he was made an accused by the British government and declared a proclaimed officer in September 1943.
He had applied for the Swatantrata Sainik Samman Pension in March 1982 and his name was sent by the Bihar government to the Centre in February 1983. The recommendation was reiterated in September 2009, the plea said.
In November 2017, the central government said Singh's records were not available with the Ministry of Home Affairs and the Bihar government was requested to share verified copies of the relevant documents.
Even after that, several communications were exchanged between various authorities but the petitioner did not get his pension.
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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.
