DUSU removes busts of Savarkar, others from campus
New Delhi: The ABVP-led Delhi University Students' Union has removed the busts of V D Savarkar, Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose from the campus, the student outfit said in a statement on Saturday.
The ABVP, however, claimed that the Delhi University has assured them that the busts will be reinstalled in accordance with the procedure after the DUSU polls are concluded.
The busts of the trio were installed on August 20 by outgoing DUSU president Shakti Singh without taking permission from the varsity authorities. They were removed on the intervening night of Friday and Saturday.
"ABVP-led DUSU has removed the busts of Veer Savarkar, Bhagat Singh and Subhash Chandra Bose till permission is obtained from the DU Administration. The busts have been kept (at a) safe (place) by the varsity," the RSS-affiliated outfit said in a statement.
Earlier, the ABVP had asked DUSU office-bearers to install the statues as per the procedure, it claimed.
The students' body also demanded "stringent legal action" against members of the Congress-affiliated National Students' Union of India (NSUI) for allegedly blackening the bust of Savarkar on Thursday.
The ABVP claimed left-affiliated student organisations along with AAP's CYSS and the NSUI had "stooped to a low level" and were harming the "the culture of debate and discussion, prevalent in the university".
"ABVP strongly believes that the Left, AAP and the student organisations affiliated to the Congress should stop insulting freedom fighters to meet their trivial political interests," it said.
ABVP Delhi's State Secretary Sidharth Yadav said: "It is very unfortunate that the DU administration turned a deaf ear to DUSU's demand for installation of busts of freedom fighters, for a very long time. The university should restore these idols, as per their assurances, at the earliest."
The manner in which other student organisations have carried out such extremely unfortunate acts reveal the real and degraded mindset of these student organisations towards freedom fighters, the repercussions of which they will face in the times to come, he added.
"At the same time, the Congress should understand that its 'Kaalikh model' is not going to hide the reality. We have decided to remove the busts because we don't want to do politics over the name of freedom fighters," he said.
No immediate reaction was available from the university.
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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.
