Karnataka CM Siddaramaiah to be felicitated by Maharashtra Congress, NCP on Sunday
Bengaluru (PTI): Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah will be felicitated in Maharashtra by the state's Pradesh Congress Committee as well as ally NCP on Sunday, to mark the massive victory of the Congress in last month's Assembly elections.
According to the itinerary released by the Chief Minister's office, Siddaramaiah will fly from here to Kolhapur, from where he would drive to Sangli by road to attend a programme organised by the Maharashtra Pradesh Congress Committee. This would be Siddaramaiah's maiden visit to Maharashtra after becoming the Chief Minister for the second time. He would then fly to Baramati -- on invitation of Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) chief Sharad Pawar -- to attend a function on the birth anniversary of 18th century Maratha queen Ahilyadevi Holkar organised by Punyashlok Ahilyadevi Holkar Vikas Pratishthan, where he would also be felicitated, sources close to the Karnataka chief minister said.
Pawar wrote to Siddaramaiah on June 9 inviting him to Baramati -- the NCP leader's home turf in Pune district -- saying the people of Maharashtra would like to felicitate him. Pawar said the Karnataka Assembly elections have demonstrated the strength of "secular forces" and have again paved the way for a change in the political dynamics of the nation. "The reverberations of the elections have reached and permeated through Maharashtra and the people here are enthused to welcome and felicitate you in Maharashtra," Pawar, a Rajya Sabha member and former chief minister of Maharashtra, said in the letter.
According to Pawar, the Dhangar community, which has consistently supported him throughout his political career, has taken the initiative to invite and felicitate Siddaramaiah. Leaders of the community wished to felicitate Siddaramaiah on the occasion of Ahilyadevi Holkar's birth anniversary. "I do personally invite you on behalf of the community and the people of Maharashtra," Pawar added.
In the May 10 Karnataka elections, the Congress ousted the BJP from power, winning 135 seats in the 224-member Assembly. BJP got just 66 seats and the Janata Dal (Secular) headed by former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda managed only 19.
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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.
