Mahapanchayat held in presence of VHP, Bajrang Dal leaders opposing church construction in Gurugram
Gurugram (PTI): People from several villages here held a 'mahapanchayat' on Friday opposing the ongoing construction of a church on a two-acre agricultural plot. Many leaders of Hindu outfits, including the VHP and Bajrang Dal took part in the gathering.
Residents of Teekli and neighbouring villages said they feared the church could be front for religious conversion activities.
Those building the church could not be contacted for a response.
The villagers and VHP, Bajrang Dal leaders questioned the construction, claiming that the local Christian population is reportedly less than 1 per cent of the "10,000 Hindu families".
Sandeep Kumar, head of Teekli village, said some members of the Christian community purchased land from a farmer of the village and applied for change of land use (CLU) but it was rejected.
"At the time, they assured us that no church would be constructed but they somehow obtained the CLU and have now started the construction of the church. But we will not allow any church to be built in the village," he said.
A 52-member committee was also formed at the 'mahapanchayat', which decided that they will meet the deputy commissioner on Monday and submit a memorandum addressed to the chief minister.
People from Noorpur, Aklimpur, Badshahpur, Palra, Gairatpur Bas and Kherkhi Baghniki villages participated in the 'mahapanchayat', which was chaired by one Kishor Singh.
Leaders of the Hindu outfits warned that they will not allow the construction of a church here.
Yashwant Shekhawat from Vishwa Hindu Parishad and Surendra Tawar from Bajrang Dal said there were "no Christian families" living around the village.
Kulbhushan Bhardwaj, an advocate, said, "Offering namaz in the open at public places is now banned after prolonged effort of 'sanatanis'. All Hindu outfits have come forward against the construction of the church. We will never allow any church in Teekli village or in areas surrounding it."
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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.
