There were 47 log-ins to Mahua Moitra's parliamentary account from Dubai, allege sources
New Delhi, Nov 1: A day before TMC MP Mahua Moitra appears before the Lok Sabha's Ethics Committee, probing BJP MP Nishikant Dubey's "cash-for-query" allegations against her, sources privy to the matter alleged that nearly 47 log-ins to her parliamentary account were made from Dubai.
He has accused Moitra of asking questions, which were keyed in through her parliamentary account, at the behest of businessman Darshan Hiranandani in return for bribes and favours from the Dubai-based scion of a well-known business family.
Moitra has admitted that she shared her log-in credentials with Hiranandani, whom she has described as a close friend for a long time, but has ruled out any pecuniary motivation and asserted that the questions were always hers.
Dubey has accused her of compromising national interest by sharing her parliamentary portal log-in and password with an outsider, and has cited the agreement MPs sign to keep the details secret to demand action against her.
The third-term BJP MP from Godda in Jharkhand on Wednesday referred to "media reports" that her log-in was opened 47 times from Hiranandani's place in Dubai and as many questions were asked in Parliament.
"If this news is true, then all the MPs of the country should stand against Mahua ji's corruption. Hiranandani asked questions in Lok Sabha for Hiranandani. Are we MPs for promoting selfish interests of capitalists," Dubey said on X.
The committee has taken assistance from the Union ministries of home and information technology to probe the matter and is believed to have received details from them to its queries.
What has added to Moitra's woes is an affidavit by the businessman in which he admitted to giving bribes to her so that she could ask questions to target the Adani Group and Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
She has claimed that Hiranandani was coerced by the government to file the affidavit and has sought to question him during her appearance at the panel, an unlikely eventuality as it is not a standard practice in the working of such parliamentary panels.
The TMC MP has claimed that the Adani Group is behind the "bogus" charges due to her strident criticism of the business conglomerate.
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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.
