BJP is a 'sinking ship' in Karnataka, Congress a united force: Randeep Surjewala
New Delhi, Apr 4: Terming the BJP as a 'sinking ship' in Karnataka which even Prime Minister Narendra Modi cannot save, Congress leaders on Tuesday said their party is "united" in the southern state and will ensure the "40 percent commission" government is ousted.
AICC general secretary Randeep Surjewala and former chief minister Siddaramaiah also dismissed reports claiming that the latter had pushed his case as a contender for the top post and said his statements to a channel were "misinterpreted".
They said Siddaramaiah had never claimed that he would be the chief minister and had only stated that he is a contender and that the party high command would decide after consulting the elected MLAs on who the leader would be.
Siddaramaiah and PCC president D K Shivakumar were in the national capital to attend the party's central election committee meeting here on Tuesday.
Congress president Mallikarjun Kharge and former party chief Rahul Gandhi were present during the meeting, where the leadership discussed the allocation of tickets for the remaining 100 seats.
The Congress was the first to declare 124 candidates for the May 10 election to the 224-member Karnataka Assembly.
Surjewala told reporters that the screening committee and the Central Election Committee again met on Tuesday and discussed the probable candidates for the remaining seats and would declare some more seats by the late evening.
He stressed that the leaders were unanimous while deciding on the party candidates for the upcoming elections.
"The '40 percent Commission BJP Sarkara' in Karnataka has floundered and failed. The so-called 'double engine Sarkara' is a double-betrayal for Karnataka. Modi government betrays Karnataka on one hand and the Bommai government brazenly loots Karnataka on the other hand," he alleged.
"The way in which the BJP leaders are leaving the party in Karnataka in hordes, as over 10 MLAs have left expressing no confidence in the Bommai government, it (BJP) is a sinking ship which is on a nosedive and neither Prime Minister Narendra Modi nor the corrupt BJP government can save it anymore," Surjewala told reporters.
He also claimed that the Congress stood firmly united while the BJP is running scared.
He alleged that while Chief Minister Basavraj Bommai "is not being respected anymore, former chief minister B S Yediyurappa is being insulted everyday".
Siddaramaiah said he had given an interview to a TV channel which misinterpreted it. He claimed that he never said that he will be the chief minister.
"I said in the interview that I am also an aspirant for the chief minister's post and, likewise, D K Shivakumar is also an aspirant for the chief minister's post. The aim of both of us is to defeat BJP and to bring back the Congress party to power," he said
"My statement in the interview is misinterpreted. What I said was I am an aspirant and Shivakumar is an aspirant and there is nothing wrong in being an aspirant," he said,
Ultimately, the newly-elected MLAs will have to elect the leader of the legislature party after the election, not now, and ultimately, the high command has to take a decision, he said.
Siddaramaiah claimed that there is a strong anti-incumbency against the BJP. He said the "state has never had such a corrupt government".
Shivakumar also said their purpose is to jointly remove the 'corrupt' BJP government from power in the state.
Meanwhile, hitting out at Congress leaders Siddaramaiah and Shivakumar, Bommai said they are fighting for the chief minister's post and their main focus is power and not the welfare of the people.
"People who have to decide (whom to elect), don't have both (leaders) in mind... Both are dreaming about the chief minister's seat, but it will not come true," Chief Minister Bommai said.
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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.
