Rahul Gandhi to launch agitation on April 5 from Kolar, where he made remark on Modi surname
Bengaluru, Mar 29: Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will begin the party's nationwide 'Satyamev Jayate' agitation on April 5 from Kolar, the very place where he made a remark on the Modi surname for which he was convicted of criminal defamation and was stripped of his Parliament membership, party state president D K Shivakumar said on Wednesday.
The KPCC chief said this during a joint press meet with senior party leader and former Union Minister Anand Sharma.
"The Rahul Gandhi disqualification issue began with his speech in Kolar. On April 5, Rahul Gandhi will come to Kolar and begin his Satyameva Jayate agitation from there, which will go across the country," Shivakumar said, adding, "We asked him to begin from here. He has agreed and the preparations are on for it."
Gandhi would give a "message of change from the very soil of Kolar", in the presence of AICC President Mallikarjun Kharge and other leaders, he said.
On March 23, Gandhi was sentenced to two years in jail by a court in Gujarat's Surat in a 2019 criminal defamation case over his "why all thieves have the Modi surname" remark. A day later, he was disqualified from the Lok Sabha restrospectively from the date of his conviction in the case.
Gandhi reportedly made those remarks in Kolar in April 2019.
Speaking about his disqualification as MP, Sharma said it was settled law that if there was any reference made to any unidentifiable and indeterminate community, no charge of criminal defamation could ever be levelled.
He said, "A non-existent charge of criminal defamation and maximum punishment (of two years) was given within three weeks, and subsequent disqualification in 18 hours. That's what happened. This judgment was a flawed judgment; it will be trashed and reversed by the higher judiciary."
Sharma pointed out that the Lok Sabha had hastened to disqualify Gandhi before he could even file an appeal against the court order, which he was entitled to do. He also said that the disqualification "does not hold water", as "no reference was made to the President in this regard." The Congress contends that Parliamentary procedure dictates that only the President of India has the power to disqualify an MP from Parliament.
Alleging that parliamentary democracy in India was not only under threat but that there was a siege on parliamentary democracy, Sharma said never before in the history of the country since Parliament was established and the first elections were held in 1952 had the opposition been "completely denied its voice".
The ruling party was derailing the budget session of Parliament by not allowing any discussion, he said, adding, "The message is clear: they (BJP) are rattled and scared that if there is a debate on issues that have been raised by Rahul Gandhi and Congress, BJP has many questions to answer. It is for the people now to judge."
Accusing the ruling party of making false allegations that Rahul Gandhi had made statements against India and its democracy, he said, "The Congress rejects the claims. Their agenda was not to allow Rahul Gandhi to speak."
He also reiterated the Congress' demand that the only way to comprehensively investigate the Adani corruption issue was through a Joint Parliamentary Committee.
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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.
