New Parliament building country's property, will attend its inauguration: HD Deve Gowda
Bengaluru (PTI): JD(S) supremo and former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda on Thursday said he will be attending the inauguration of the new Parliament building in New Delhi on May 28, saying it is a property of the country and built from taxpayers' money.
The JD(S) patriarch questioned whether it was the office of the BJP and RSS for boycotting its inauguration. Prime Minister Narendra Modi is slated to inaugurate the building on Sunday.
"I am attending the inauguration of the new Parliament building. It is the property of the country. It is not anyone's personal matter," Gowda said.
Speaking at the JD(S) introspection meeting following Karnataka Assembly poll results here, he said it is not anyone's personal programme, it is a country's programme.
"That magnificent building was built with the tax money of the people of the country. It belongs to the country. It is not a BJP or RSS office," he said, adding he is participating in the inauguration of the new Parliament building as a former Prime Minister and a citizen of the country.
As of now 21 opposition parties have said they will not be attending the inauguration ceremony, primarily taking exception to Modi doing the honours rather than President Droupadi Murmu.
Stating that he has many reasons to oppose BJP politically, Gowda, according to an official release said, "I do not like to bring politics in the matter of opening the Parliament building."
"I have been elected to both houses of Parliament. I have performed duty there in the constitutional framework, and I still am a member (of the Rajya Sabya)," he said.
"I have worked to protect the values of the Constitution. Therefore, I cannot bring politics into the matter of the Constitution," he added.
Noting that many parties have boycotted the inauguration of the Parliament building and many have asked him whether he will attend it or not, being a former PM, Gowda said, "I want to tell them that I am committed to the Constitution and will go to the inauguration of the Parliament building."
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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.
