SC commences pronouncing verdict, says it is for Parliament to effect changes in law
Same sex marriage
New Delhi (PTI): It is for Parliament to change the Special Marriage Act and the court can't make law but only interpret it, Chief Justice D Y Chandrachud said on Tuesday while pronouncing verdict on 21 pleas seeking legal validation for same-sex marriage.
Four separate verdicts will be pronounced by the bench.
"There are four separate judgements in the matter," the CJI said and started reading out operative portion of his verdict.
Pronouncing the verdict, he said it was "incorrect to state that marriage is a static and unchanging institution."
The five-judge constitution bench comprises the CJI and Justices Sanjay Kishan Kaul, S Ravindra Bhat, Hima Kohli and P S Narasimha.
Besides the CJI, Justice Kaul, Justice Bhat and Justice Narasimha have penned separate verdicts.
This court can't make law and it can only interpret it and give effect to it, he said, adding "homosexuality or queerness is not an urban concept or restricted to upper class of society".
"Whether there is need for change in regime of Special Marriage Act is for the Parliament to decide, CJI Chandrachud said.
"To imagine queer as existing only in urban spaces would be like erasing them, queerness can be regardless of one's caste or class," he said.
The pronouncement of verdict by the CJI is underway.
The bench had on May 11 reserved its verdict on the pleas after a marathon hearing of 10 days.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
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
===================
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.
