Bengaluru, July 26 (PTI): Taking a dig at Prime Minister Narendra Modi for deriding the opposition alliance 'INDIA', citing reviled names such as East India Company and Indian Mujahideen, Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah on Wednesday sought to know why he has so much hatred for the beautiful, melodious and holy name of India.

Pointing out to the PM that Nirav Modi and Lalit Modi, who looted hundreds of crores of tax money of Indians and ran away from the country, too have his Modi surname, he wondered whether they can be compared to him.

"Honorable Prime Minister @narendramodi, you have compared the alliance of opposition parties 'INDIA' to the East India Company and the Indian Mujahideen. Nirav Modi and Lalit Modi, who looted hundreds of crores of tax money of Indians and ran away from the country, too have your Modi surname ? Can they be compared with you?" Siddaramaiah asked in a tweet.

Noting that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was sued for defamation, sentenced to two years in jail, and disqualified from the Lok Sabha for asking the common question stating that Lalit and Nirav too have Modi in their names, he said, "Doesn't action taken against Rahul Gandhi apply to you, for your comparison comparing India to East India Company and Indian Mujahideen?"

Modi on Tuesday derided the opposition alliance INDIA as the most directionless the country had ever seen, and cited reviled names such as East India Company and Indian Mujahideen to assert that people cannot be misled merely by the use of the country's name.

With opposition parties rallying around the name 'INDIA' for their alliance, the PM cited the history of several organisations, including some banned extremist and terror outfits using the country's name, and panned the grouping as a collection of corrupt leaders and parties.

Siddaramaiah further asked, " Prime Minister @narendramodi why do you have so much hatred for the beautiful, melodious and holy name of India? Being so impatient with the name India, will you change the name of your own government programmes like Make in India, Start Up India, Skill India etc.?"

Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.



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

===================

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.