Minister claims Digvijaya Singh trying to destabilise Madhya Pradesh govt
Bhopal: A Madhya Pradesh minister has claimed that senior Congress leader Digvijaya Singh is trying to destabilise the Kamal Nath-led state government.
State Forest Minister Umang Singhar wrote a letter to Congress president Sonia Gandhi on Sunday in this connection, a move laying bare the factional feuds in the MP party unit, especially against the backdrop of names being propped up for the post of the state unit president, currently held by Nath.
Singh recently wrote to state ministers, urging them to give him an appointment so he can know what action has been taken on his recommendations for transfers and other works.
Singhar, a tribal MLA from Gandhwani seat, without taking Singh's name, told reporters here, "When he is running the government from behind the curtain, which is known to everyone including the Congress workers, then what was the need to write a letter (to ministers)".
In his letter to Gandhi, Singhar said, "I am writing to you with lot of pain to inform you that senior party leader and MP (Singh) is trying to destabilise the Kamal Nath government and trying to establish himself as a power centre."
He is continuously writing letters to the chief minister and his cabinet colleagues and also (making it) viral on social media, the letter further stated.
"He had also written letters to Nath regarding Vyapam, e-tendering and tree-plantation scams, but had not written about Simhast (Kumbh Mela) scam as his son Jaivardhan Singh is heading the urban administration and development ministry. The Congress had made it (Simhast scam) a big issue while it was in the opposition," the letter said.
"Such letters give credence to the opposition, including former chief minister Shivraj Singh Chouhan and Leader of the Opposition Gopal Bhargava, that Digvijaya is running the government from behind the curtain," it added.
When contacted by PTI, Singhar confirmed he wrote the letter to Gandhi, and asked "what is wrong with it". Singh was unavailable for comments in the matter.
However, defending Singh, state public relations minister P C Sharma said there is nothing wrong in his writing letters to the chief minister and ministers as he is the former CM and currently a Rajya Sabha MP.
People come to him with their problems and he highlighted them by writing letters, he said. "He did the 'Narmada Parikrama' (circumambulation), and a large number of people contact him with their problems.
There is nothing wrong in writing letters," said Sharma, who is considered a loyalist of Singh. Sharma also refuted reports that Singh was running the government from behind the curtain. "It is Chief Minister Kamal Nath who is running the government and all senior leaders and ministers are supporting him," he asserted.
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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.
