1987-batch IPS officer V K Bhawra made Punjab's new police chief
Chandigarh, Jan 8: Senior IPS officer Viresh Kumar Bhawra has been appointed as the new director-general of Punjab police, an official order said on Saturday.
The order came just hours before the announcement of the dates for the assembly elections in five states including Punjab.
Bhawra, who was the DGP of Punjab Home Guards, replaced officiating DGP Siddharth Chattopadhyaya.
Chattopadhyaya along with 13 other police and civil officers appeared on Friday at Ferozepur before a three-member panel formed by the Union Home Ministry to inquire into the "serious lapses" in Prime Minister Narendra Modi's security during his Ferozepur tour.
The Charanjit Singh Channi government selected the 1987 batch officer Bhawra out of a panel of three officers shortlisted by the Union Public Service Commission.
The other two officers in the panel were senior IPS officers Dinkar Gupta and Prabodh Kumar.
On the consideration of the panel received from the UPSC, the Punjab governor is pleased to appoint Viresh Kumar Bhawra, IPS as director general of police, Punjab (Head of Police Force), the order said.
Bhawra term shall be for a minimum period of two years from the date of assumption of office, it added.
Punjab got its third DGP in a span of three months.
A few days back, the UPSC had sent a panel of three IPS officers -- Dinkar Gupta, V K Bhawra and Prabodh Kumar for the appointment of a regular director general of police of Punjab.
According to the Supreme Court guidelines, out of the three shortlisted IPS officers by the UPSC, the state government is to finalise the name of one officer for the appointment of a regular DGP.
The Punjab government had sent a list of 10 IPS officers including Siddharth Chattopadhyaya for shortlisting the panel of three officers.
According to the SC guidelines, only an officer who has been left at least six months of service can be considered for the post of DGP.
The UPSC had taken October 5, 2021 as the cut-off date for the selection of the DGP and since Chattopadhyaya was due to retire on March 31, 2022, his name did not find a place in the panel.
After Charanjit Singh Channi took over as the new chief minister last September, the 1988-batch IPS officer Iqbal Preet Singh Sahota was appointed as the officiating DGP replacing Dinkar Gupta who was the state police chief when Amarinder Singh was the chief minister.
But Punjab Congress chief Navjot Singh Sidhu was against the appointment of Sahota.
Later after facing pressure from the former cricketer, the state government had appointed 1986-batch IPS officer Siddharth Chattopadhyaya as officiating DGP until a regular DGP is appointed out of a panel of three IPS officers shortlisted by the UPSC.
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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.
