Indore water contamination: Official suspended over reference to ‘ghanta’ row
Indore/Dewas (PTI): A sub-divisional magistrate in Madhya Pradesh’s Dewas district was suspended on Sunday for allegedly citing minister Kailash Vijayvargiya’s controversial remark and the Congress’ allegations in an official order amid the Indore water contamination crisis, officials said.
They said Ujjain Division Revenue Commissioner Ashish Singh suspended the SDM on charges of serious negligence, indifference and irregularities in the discharge of official duties.
The officials said that the SDM had issued an order on Saturday to deploy subordinate revenue staffers to maintain law and order in view of a Congress protest in Dewas on Sunday.
“However, the wording of a portion of the Congress memorandum was copied verbatim in the SDM’s order issued for official purposes. This amounts to serious negligence, a senior official told PTI.
The Congress memorandum had targeted the BJP government in the state over the Indore drinking water crisis and said minister Kailash Vijayvargiya’s use of the objectionable word ‘ghanta’ in response to a journalist’s question reflected “inhumanity and authoritarianism”.
The memorandum, citing instructions of state Congress president Jitu Patwari, said party workers would hold ‘ghanta’ protests against this “inhuman behaviour” by ringing bells outside the residences of BJP MPs and MLAs across the state.
The protest was organised against deaths linked to contaminated drinking water in Indore’s Bhagirathpura area and Vijayvargiya’s controversial remark to a TV journalist who questioned him about the tragedy.
Vijayvargiya, the state's Urban Development and Housing Minister, sparked a row on the night of December 31 by using the word ‘ghanta’ on camera when asked about the water contamination crisis. In common parlance, the term is broadly understood to mean “nonsense”.
The administration has confirmed six deaths so far due to the diarrhoea outbreak caused by contaminated water in the city. Mayor Pushyamitra Bhargav had said on January 2 that he had information about 10 deaths linked to the outbreak.
However, local residents have claimed that 16 people, including a six-month-old infant, have died due to the outbreak.
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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.
