CM Siddaramaiah suspects BJP, its 'brother' responsible for 'fake letter' against Agriculture Min
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has questioned whether the BJP or its "brother" was behind a "fake letter" accusing Agriculture Minister N Cheluvarayaswamy of demanding bribes from officials after the Governor asked the government to probe the complaint.
The "brother" remark was an apparent dig at JD(S) leader and former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy. The opposition BJP and the JD(S) have been warming up to each other after the recent Assembly elections.
In the letter purportedly criticising Cheluvarayaswamy, seven assistant agriculture directors posted in Mandya district have accused the minister of demanding Rs 6 to 8 lakh from officers of the department.
The complainants, in the letter, threatened to end their lives along with their family members if such corrupt practices are not stopped.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Monday tweeted: "It has come out that the letter in circulation in the public domain is fake. The joint agriculture director has already clarified that no officers in the district have written such a letter," he added.
"The leaders of BJP, are you the creator of such a fake letter spreading slander against the government or your brother?" he tweeted.
The Chief Minister said the matter would be reviewed by the government and assured that an investigation would be conducted, if necessary.
After receiving the letter, Governor Thaawarchand Gehlot referred it to Chief Secretary Vandita Sharma on August 1 to look into the issue and take required action as per the rules.
Minister Cheluvarayaswamy too said the letter to the Governor against him appears to be fake and said that he would try to ascertain its authenticity.
Cheluvarayaswamy said he spoke to Agriculture Joint Director of Mandya district V S Ashoka, who said it was a fake letter.
Meanwhile, Ashoka convened a meeting on Monday with the assistant directors of all taluks in Mandya and enquired with them whether they wrote any letter to the Governor. "They all said in unison that they have not written any letter to the Governor," he told PTI.
Minister Cheluvarayaswamy said: "It appears to be a fake letter. Some people are trying to dig out something about me. I will ask the secretary of our department to investigate it."
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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.
