Delhi Police raids Kerala residence of former NewsClick employee
Pathanamthitta (Ker), (PTI): The Delhi police on Friday conducted a raid and seized the laptop and phone of Malayali journalist and former NewsClick employee Anusha Paul from her residence near Kodumon here.
After a three-member team of the Delhi Police recorded her statement and confiscated her electronic devices, Paul told the media that she was questioned about her association with NewsClick and the CPI(M).
She said the questions ranged from whether she reported on farmers' protest, anti-NRC-CAA protests, or about the COVID-19 management of the Union government.
"This is a witch-hunt to threaten the organisation and its employees who used to raise voice against the Narendra Modi government and the RSS," Paul said.
Paul was staying in Kerala for the treatment of a close family member.
She told the media that the Delhi Police asked her whether she knows the Delhi state secretary of the CPI(M), K M Tiwari.
"Of course, I know him. I told them that. He is the state secretary of the CPI(M). I am a CPI(M) worker. I am a state committee member of Delhi unit of the Democratic Youth Federation of India (DYFI) and its state treasurer," she said.
She added that the Kerala Police was not part of the raid team.
"Later local police came and said they were not aware of the raids," she claimed.
The Special Cell of the Delhi Police arrested NewsClick founder and editor-in-chief Prabir Purkayastha and human resources department head Amit Chakravarty on Tuesday evening, after a total of 46 journalists and contributors to the online news portal were questioned and their mobile phones and other electronic gadgets seized through the day.
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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.
