Bengaluru: The High Court of Karnataka on Tuesday issued notices to the state government, Bengaluru Metro Rail Corporation Limited (BMRCL) and others on a petition filed by a man, who lost his wife and minor child in the Namma Metro pillar collapse incident here earlier this year, seeking compensation.

Petitioner Lohitkumar V Sulakhe filed a writ petition demanding a compensation of Rs 10 crore, claiming that the accident had occurred due to the negligence of BMRCL authorities.

Petitioner's wife Tejaswini L Sulakhe (26) and his two and a half year old son Vihan, who were travelling on a bike died after the under-construction metro pillar fell on them on January 10, 2023 near Nagavara.

The BMRCL had communicated to Lohitkumar that Rs 20 lakh compensation would be provided to the kin of the victims.

In his petition, which was heard by Justice Krishna S Dixit, Lohitkumar submitted that “mere compensation of Rs 20 lakh amount was not sufficient for the innocent life which was lost due to inaction, inadequate safety measures and carelessness on part of the respondents.” Tejaswini, a software engineer, was earning Rs.75,748 per month, it said.

The petitioner further said that the compensation “is not adequate, and the same is just a mere compensation to hide the negligence of their part of safety work and the fact that all the respondents present in this case lacked knowledge on safety precautions and how all the respondents were careless and ignorant about the safety measures and due to which two innocent lives were lost.” Noting that Tejaswini was the breadwinner in the family, which had recently moved into a flat purchased on loan, the petition sought a compensation of Rs 10 crore for the victim's family.

The court adjourned the case after issuing the notices to the respondents to file their objections

The other respondents in the petition include the MD, Chief Engineer and Operation Engineer of BMRCL, ICICI Lombard General Insurance, MD of Nagarjuna Construction Company and its project manager.

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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.