Adoption row: Infant brought back to Kerala from Andhra Pradesh
Thiruvananthapuram(PTI): The infant, who is mired in a recent adoption controversy in Kerala, was brought back to the state from Andhra Pradesh late on Sunday night by a team of officials from the Kerala State Council for Child Welfare (KSCCW).
The one-year-old boy, who was in the foster care of a couple in Andhra Pradesh, is suspected to be the child of Anupama S Chandran, who has raised allegations against her parents for kidnapping her baby soon after his birth and giving him in adoption through the KSCCW without her consent a year ago.
The Child welfare Committee (CWC) had on November 18 issued an order directing the KSCCW to bring the child back to Kerala.
A team, led by KSCCW officials and comprising an escort of a Special Juvenile Police unit, received the child from the adoptive parents in Andhra Pradesh on Saturday and brought him back to Kerala. The team reached the Thiruvananthapuram airport on Sunday night.
The child has been handed over to a child care institution as directed by the CWC. A DNA test would be carried out soon to identify his biological parents, according to the CWC order.
Anupama (24) and her partner Ajith are on a protest in front of the KSCCW office at Thycaud here for some days, demanding to get her baby back.
The woman's allegation that her child was forcibly taken away from her by her father, a local CPI(M) leader, has triggered a political controversy in the state.
The government had announced a departmental probe into the incident.
Anupama had accused her parents of forcibly taking away her newborn child from her soon after its birth a year ago and alleged that though she had complained about it to the police several times since April, they were reluctant to register a case against her family members.
However, the Peroorkkada police here has said a case was registered against six people -- her parents, sister, sister's husband and two of his father's friends -- and that the delay happened as they were awaiting legal opinion.
A family court last month stayed the adoption process of the child and directed the police to submit a detailed report in the matter in a sealed cover.
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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.
