Godhra, Aug 2: Three Muslim boys were allegedly thrashed by six unidentified men for refusing to say "Shri Ram" in Gujarat's Godhra town, police said on Friday.

Siddique Bhagat, the complainant, claimed that six unidentified men on two motorcycles stopped his son Samir (17), and his friends Salman Gheeteli and Sohail Bhagat when the trio were returning home on motorbike on Thursday night.

"The accused asked my son and his friends to chant `Shri Ram'. When the boys refused, they started thrashing them. One of them hit Samir with a bicycle chain on forehead while another man hit Salman on head with a blunt object," he said.

"Before leaving, the assailants threatened to kill them if they were seen again in the area," stated the First Information Report (FIR) registered at Godhra Town police station, reported in PTI.

Samir and his friends who were injured were taken to the civil hospital by some local people, said police inspector H C Rathva.

"As the victims are not in a position to speak right now, we do not have more details. We have registered an FIR against six unidentified persons," Rathva added.

Incidents of members of the minority community being assaulted for refusing to say `Jai Shri Ram' have been reported from several parts of the country recently.

ALSO READ: Muslim hawker allegedly beaten over 'Jai Shri Ram' chants; Internet suspended after tension

ALSO READ: Beaten, forced to chant 'Jai Shri Ram', J'khand man dies; 3 arrested

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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.