Sanatan Dharma is 'synonymous' with India : RSS chief Mohan Bhagwat
Rohtak/Hisar (PTI): Sanatan Dharma is "synonymous" with India and the country's culture is based on it, Rashtriya Swayamsevak Sangh (RSS) chief Mohan Bhagwat said on Thursday.
In an apparent reference to DMK leader Udhayanidhi Stalin's controversial comments on Sanatan Dharma last month, he said that saying that it should be destroyed is like harming oneself.
Stalin had claimed that Sanatan Dharma is against social justice and it should be eradicated.
"We have to live by this Sanatan," the RSS chief said, adding that "ye Sanatan Bharat ke saath ekroop hai (Sanatan is synonymous with India)".
Bhagwat was addressing a gathering at an event at the Baba Mastnath Math in Haryana's Rohtak.
"...Sanatan Dharma he Hindu rashtra hai, ye apne rashtra ke saath ekroop hai (Sanatan Dharma is Hindu rashtra, it is synonymous with the country)", he said.
"Our culture is based on Sanatan. The values of our religion are based on Sanatan," he said. Sanatan never ends and is eternal, the RSS chief said and asserted that it was present earlier, is present today and will be there in the future.
Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Union Minister V K Singh, Yoga guru Ramdev, Congress leader Bhupinder Singh Hooda and his son and Rajya Sabha MP Deepender Singh Hooda, and seers from across the country were among those present at the event.
In another event in Khanda Kheri village in Hisar district where among others Ramdev was also present, Bhagwat said the whole world has followed India's rich cultural heritage.
He said the world is going through difficult circumstances and families are breaking apart. At the same time, Bhagwat said India's situation in the "Kaliyuga" is much better than other countries.
The RSS chief was addressing a gathering after inaugurating the 'Bharat Mitra Pillar' in Khanda Kheri.
The 'Bharat Mitra Pillar' has been built in the memory of the late Mitrasen Arya, father of BJP leader and former Haryana Minister Abhimanyu.
Bhagwat said that this pillar reflects the cultural heritage of India, and people, particularly youngsters, should visit to see this. They should be made aware of the rich cultural heritage of India, he said.
He said people like Mitrasen Arya strived to take society and the country forward.
"To connect our new generation with values, culture and civilisation, we should follow the footsteps of Mitrasen," he said.
At the Rohtak event, while referring to strife in some parts of the world, Adityanath said that "in the entire world, if there can be a guarantee of world peace that only can be Sanatan Dharma and India, and no one else".
This is the reason that when there is "sankat" (trouble) in the world, every country is looking towards India and towards Prime Minister Narendra Modi with great hope, the chief minister said.
They believe that India can bring hope to them, and behind this hope when 140 crore Indians come together it becomes a strength for the whole world, he said.
Adityanath said that "we all know the Nath sampraday (sect) is the carrier of the country's Sanatan Dharma tradition".
Referring to the under-construction Ram temple in Uttar Pradesh's Ayodhya, Adityanath said what was impossible, today Bharat has made that possible.
Those who had disbelief did not want to take the name of Ram Janambhoomi even by mistake. But those who had belief in Sanatan Dharma, they believed in doing is their job and leaving the rest to God, he said in Rohtak.
Earlier on Wednesday, Union Home Minister Amit Shah had unveiled a statue of Mahant Shri Chand Nath Yogi at the Baba Mastnath Math at Rohtak and also addressed a gathering.
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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.
