New Year stabbings rock Delhi, leave 3 dead
New Delhi (PTI): The New Year evening was streaked with blood with three almost back-to-back stabbings leaving an equal number of people dead in Delhi.
Bihari Lal, 50, was allegedly stabbed in an attack by a group of juveniles when he asked them to stop shouting and playing loud music in northwest Delhi's Lal Bagh area.
A tailor by profession, Bihari Lal had just returned home Thursday evening from his job in Shastri Nagar, when he was faced with a raucous mob of revellers, whom he chastised for making noise.
"This led to a heated exchange, during which one of the juveniles stabbed Lal," a police officer said, adding that one of the boys kicked the victim several times during the fight.
Bihari Lal was rushed to Babu Jagjivan Ram Memorial Hospital, where doctors declared him dead.
Police apprehended a juvenile in connection with the killing and seized the weapon of the crime. A hunt for the rest involved in the fight is on.
An FIR was registered at the Adarsh Nagar Police Station, and investigators are examining eyewitness accounts and CCTV footage from the area.
Bihari Lal's family and neighbours alleged that the group was notorious for creating disturbance in the area.
"He had just returned from duty and was parking his cycle when they came and started abusing everyone, throwing buckets, boxes and people's belongings. Bihari Lal only told them not to use abusive language and shout, as there were women and children around. That was all he said," Dimple, a neighbour, recounted.
Pushpa, a relative, alleged that the group had been terrorising residents for some time. "They keep throwing bottles, stones and sticks, and nobody does anything. We complained earlier, but no action was taken. The police never did anything," she said.
Pushpa said four boys were involved in the attack and "they stabbed him three times."
Hours later, in outer Delhi's Mangolpuri, an e-rickshaw driver, Vikas, was stabbed in a fight.
According to police, Vikas and his friend Sandeep, a daily-wage labourer, both aged 20, were sitting together when a group of youths started a fight with them.
"During the altercation, one of the accused stabbed Vikas, causing fatal injuries. Sandeep also suffered a minor lacerated wound," an officer said.
Both were taken to a nearby hospital, where Vikas was declared dead.
Preliminary investigation revealed that the victims and the attackers had bad blood, police said.
All six accused, four of them underage, involved in the stabbing were apprehended, police said.
The same evening, a 15-year-old boy was stabbed to death in nearby Sultanpuri.
Around 11.30 pm, police were informed that a group of men had attacked a minor with a knife.
"A police team rushed to the spot and found the injured boy lying on the road with multiple stab wounds," an officer said.
The victim, whose identity was not revealed by the police, was rushed to a hospital, where he was declared dead.
Vikram, a man aged about 30 with a history of crime, was arrested for allegedly killing the boy.
During interrogation, Vikram, who police said has six criminal convictions, revealed that two more men were with him at the time of the stabbing. A search for them has been launched.
The boy's mother said her son had been threatened several times before by the attackers, but police took no action.
"My son had gone out only to get some juice when a few people started abusing him, and a fight broke out. I ran downstairs from my sister's house and begged them not to harm my son. Instead, they took out a knife and attacked me. I somehow ran into a shop, where I saw my son being stabbed in front of my eyes," the boy's mother, Bali, said.
She said that the accused had earlier also entered her house armed with weapons. "I informed the police, but no action was taken."
The boy was her only son.
The motive of the killing is yet to be ascertained by the police.
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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.
