Siddaramaiah questions Modi's visit to Karnataka, asks if it was to loot or to give the state
Bengaluru: Congress leader and former Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Sunday questioned the reason for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's visit to Karnataka, in a series of tweets with a hashtag ‘AnswerMadiModi’ and ‘SaveNandini’.
In reference to Amul announcing its entry into Karnataka’s dairy market, Siddaramaiah asked Modi if his purpose for coming to Karnataka was to give or to loot the state. He pointed out that banks, ports and airports had been stolen from Kannadigas and asked if Modi was trying to ‘steal’ Nandini now.
“Is your purpose of coming to Karnataka is to give to Karnataka or to loot from Karnataka?... You have already stolen banks, ports & airports from Kannadigas. Are you now trying to steal Nandini (KMF) from us?” Siddaramaiah tweeted.
He pointed out that Bank of Baroda from Gujarat took over Vijaya Bank, which was founded in Karnataka, and ports and airports were handed over to Adani, a native of Gujarat. Adding that, now, Amul, a dairy brand whose roots are in Gujarat, is trying to take over the market of Nandini, a brand from Karnataka, Siddaramaiah asked sharply if Gujaratis considered Kannadigas as enemies.
He also asked about Modi’s role in the state's milk production, which, he said, was affected after Amit Shah spoke about the possibility of the merger of KMF and Amul.
Later in his tweet, the Congress leader alleged that Modi had deprived Kannadigas of their jobs in the banks, ports and airports, instead of giving two crores of jobs a year to youth of the state.
Siddaramaiah added, “Karnataka BJP wants to hurt the state's farmers by giving KMF to Amul.”
He closed the thread, mentioning how, in contrast, the ‘Ksheera Dhare’ scheme implemented by the Congress to provide an incentive of Rs 5 for every litre of milk helped to increase milk production from 45 lakh litre in 2013 to 73 lakh litre in 2017.
Prime Minister @narendramodi avare,
— Siddaramaiah (@siddaramaiah) April 9, 2023
Is your purpose of coming to Karnataka is to give to Karnataka or to loot from Karnataka?
You have already stolen banks, ports & airports from Kannadigas. Are you now trying to steal Nandini (KMF) from us?#AnswerMadiModi #SaveNandini pic.twitter.com/LooivhuEn3
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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.
