Palaniswami slams ruling DMK over Cauvery issue
Chennai (PTI): AIADMK chief Edappadi K Palaniswami on Sunday lashed out at the ruling DMK in Tamil Nadu over the Cauvery river dispute and wondered if Chief Minister M K Stalin was concerned about the people of the state on the matter.
The leader of opposition in the state assembly alleged that the DMK was "backing" the Congress government in Karnataka "with a view to ensure the businesses run by its family members" there should not be affected.
The AIADMK general secretary also charged "puppet CM Stalin" with lacking any foresight, saying he released water from the Mettur Dam in Salem on June 12.
Believing in the government's assurance, about 1.50 lakh farmers in the Cauvery delta region took up short-term 'kuruvai' crop over 5 lakh acres of land.
But now, crops on 3.50 lakh acres have withered and the rest were being taken up with well-water irrigation, Palaniswami said in a statement here.
"What should have the DMK government, which lacks efficient administration, done. It should have reduced the quantum of water released from Mettur Dam and ensured Tamil Nadu's share of Cauvery water from Karnataka for the months of June, July and August as per the law and through political pressure," he said.
The DMK government was in "deep slumber" all through, used up the water in Mettur Dam, pointed fingers at the Centre for the sake of doing so but did not do anything constructive on the matter.
If Stalin was "really concerned" about the people of the state, including those from the Cauvery delta areas, he could have taken up the matter with the neighbouring state when he went to Bengaluru to attend the swearing-in of the Siddaramaiah-led Congress governemnt in June, the former CM said.
He could have held friendly talks then and ensured release of water when Karnataka had adequate storage in its reservoirs, Palaniswami said.
He also said Stalin could have made release of Cauvery water a pre-condition for his party's continuation in the INDIA alliance, which also has Congress among others.
He could have at least made this an issue ahead of the INDIA bloc's Bengaluru conference and stayed away, Palaniswami said.
"I insist this government to show concern for farmers at least now, convene an all-party meeting and take a firm step to uphold Tamil Nadu's rights on the Cauvery issue and ensure water to the state," he demanded.
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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.
