'Vindictive': DKShi hits out at BJP govt for giving sanction to CBI to prosecute him in DA case
Bengaluru, Apr 21: Congress state president D K Shivakumar on Friday hit out at the BJP government in Karnataka for giving sanction to the CBI to prosecute him in a disproportionate assets case, calling it "vindictive".
The High Court of Karnataka on Thursday dismissed the petition by Shivakumar challenging the sanction.
Shivakumar claimed that the government did not take the Speaker's consent before giving the sanction nor did it take note of the Advocate General's purported remark that his was not a fit case for a CBI probe.
"The vindictive BJP government has given permission for a CBI inquiry," Shivakumar told reporters here. "The speaker's consent should have been there, which they have not done. Even the advocate general has said that this is not a fit case for the CBI," the former minister added.
Quoting the Advocate General, he said the Lokayukta or the Anti-Corruption Bureau could have investigated the matter. "But in order to torture me, the government has recommended it to the CBI. So I have appealed to the court," he said.
After the HC rejected his plea, Shivakumar said he would approach the higher court.
On whether this was a "pressure tactic", Shivakumar, who is seeking re-election from Kanakapura constituency in the May 10 Assembly elections, said that was "obvious".
"The BJP is harassing the opposition government be it West Bengal, Telangana, Kerala, Tamil Nadu, or Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal in Delhi," he alleged.
Following a request by the CBI, the State government had given sanction to prosecute Shivakumar on September 25, 2019, based on which it had filed an FIR against him on October 3, 2020.
The state Congress chief had challenged both the sanction and the FIR in two separate petitions before the high court. Earlier this week, the HC reserved its judgment on the petition challenging the sanction. On Wednesday, it adjourned the hearing of the other petition challenging the FIR to May 30. On Thursday evening, the single-judge bench of Justice K Natarajan dismissed the petition challenging the sanction.
The Income Tax Department had conducted a search and seizure operation in the offices and residence of Shivakumar in 2017. Based on the operation, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) started its own probe against him. Based on the ED investigation, the CBI sought sanction from the State government to file an FIR against him.
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Shivakumar had challenged the sanction on the grounds that it was a politically motivated FIR, and three earlier FIRs had already been filed against him in relation to disproportionate income.
Since he was an MLA, the permission of the Speaker of the Assembly had to be obtained which was not done in this case. Also, the government did not mention the reasons for granting the sanction to prosecute, Shivakumar said.
The CBI had objected to Shivakumar's petition in court, stating that the accused could not demand which agency should conduct the investigation against him. It argued that since the CBI was enacted under a special act, there was no need to mention the reasons to grant sanction for prosecution.
The CBI claimed that 90 per cent of the investigation was complete, and also submitted a status report to the court. Since it is a special case related to disproportionate income, the petition was sought to be dismissed.
Shivakumar has been charged under Section 13(2), Section 13(1)(e) of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
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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.
