Gehlot meets veteran BJP leader Suryakanta Vyas in Jodhpur, terms it 'courtesy visit'
Jodhpur (PTI): Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot sprang a surprise by meeting veteran BJP leader Suryakanta Vyas at her residence here late Monday.
Gehlot wrapped up his two-day campaign trail in Sardarpura constituency, from where he will be contesting the Assembly polls. He then reached the residence of Vyas in the walled city at around 12.30 am and stayed there for about 15 minutes.
Vyas is a three-time MLA from Soorsagar constituency, winning the polls in 2008, 2013, and 2018.
Speaking to reporters on Tuesday morning, ahead of his departure to join party leader Priyanka Gandhi Vadra in Jhunjhunu, Gehlot termed it a "courtesy visit" in recognition of her service to the people of Jodhpur.
"She has served Jodhpur for a long time. She has played a long inning. So, I visited her to give my respect to her," said Gehlot.
The BJP has dropped 85-year-old Vyas from its list of candidates for the November 25 polls, replacing her with Devendra Joshi to contest from Soorsagar constituency.
According to party leaders, Vyas wasn't renominated due to her age.
However, Gehlot claimed Vyas was denied a ticket because she praised his work and said the BJP should have shown some grace.
"She did not get a ticket because she praised me, my work... praising somebody's work is not bad. The BJP should have exhibited some grace," he said.
He said if development is taking place in Jodhpur, it will ultimately benefit the state. If somebody appreciates this, there should not be any prejudice against that person, he said.
Earlier, Gehlot rejected that Vyas was denied a ticket due to her age, claiming there were others of her age in the BJP who had got tickets.
Is it wrong for an MLA from an opposition party to give a positive opinion on a chief minister if his government is doing good work? Gehlot said. So why punish those who have good and amicable relations with me, he added.
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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.
