Rebellion in K’taka BJP ahead of polls; Amit Shah holds meeting with party top brass: Reports
New Delhi: The Union Home Minister, Amit Shah, held a meeting with the top leaders of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) in New Delhi today, following the release of the party's first list of candidates for the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections.
The meeting took place at Shah's residence and was attended by BJP chief JP Nadda, party general secretary (organisation) BL Santhosh, national general secretary and Karnataka in-charge Arun Singh, and Union Minister Dharmendra Pradhan.
Sources informed ANI, the high-level meeting between top Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders, including Union Home Minister Amit Shah, was held in the context of dissatisfaction expressed by multiple leaders in Karnataka after the party's initial list of candidates for the upcoming Assembly polls was announced.
After being denied a ticket to contest from the Athani constituency, former Deputy Chief Minister of Karnataka, Laxman Savadi, has resigned from his position as a Legislative Council member and has also stepped down from the primary membership of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Former Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister, Laxman Savadi, has stated that he has taken a firm decision to resign from the primary membership of the BJP and the Legislative Council, after being denied a ticket to contest from the Athani constituency. In his statement, he emphasized his self-respect and denied being influenced by anyone.
Meanwhile, supporters of Anil Benake, the incumbent BJP MLA from Belagavi North, staged a protest on Tuesday evening after he was also denied a ticket to contest in the upcoming Karnataka Assembly elections.
In another development, supporters of BJP MLA Mahadevappa Yadawad held a protest in the Ramdurg constituency of Belagavi after he was denied a ticket, and the ticket was instead given to Chikka Revana, who recently joined the party.
Meanwhile, BJP sources have revealed that former Karnataka Chief Minister and six-time BJP MLA, Jagadish Shettar, has started displaying signs of rebellion and has been summoned to Delhi. Shettar's name was omitted from the initial list of candidates for the upcoming Assembly polls, according to sources within the party.
Jagadish Shettar, the former Chief Minister of Karnataka, has announced that he will be meeting with the national president of the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), JP Nadda, on Wednesday.
Also Read: 99% Jagdish Shetter will be given election ticket: Former Karnataka CM Yediyurappa
Meanwhile, in Bengaluru, the current Chief Minister of Karnataka, Basavaraj Bommai, stated that the party has declared the names of 189 candidates, and a consensus has been reached in most areas. However, he acknowledged that some individuals disagree with the list and that discussions will be held with them. Bommai has been in constant communication with these individuals and has already spoken with Laxman Savadi, the State Vice President, urging him not to make any hasty decisions.
The Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) has announced the names of 189 candidates for the upcoming Karnataka Assembly polls. The party aimed to ensure fair representation of different castes and communities while also fielding "strong candidates" against notable Congress leaders.
Additionally, the BJP has emphasized "social engineering" in its initial list of candidates, with a mix of new and experienced individuals, according to party sources.
Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai has announced that he will be contesting from the Shiggaon constituency in the upcoming assembly polls. According to party insiders, the BJP's list includes 52 new candidates, while 21 incumbent MLAs have been excluded. The state assembly election will be held on May 10th, with 224 seats up for grabs. Vote counting is scheduled to take place on May 13th.
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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.
