Allahabad High Court quashes FIR against The Wire editor for report on farm law protest death
Prayagraj, May 25: The Allahabad High Court on Wednesday quashed the FIR lodged against The Wire editor Siddharth Varadarajan and another journalist over a news report on a man who died during the farmers' protest in Delhi last year.
Justices Ashwani Kumar Mishra and Rajnish Kumar passed the order on a petition filed by the senior journalist.
The FIR was lodged over a report in the news portal -- and Varadarajan's tweets - giving the version of the family of Rampur farmer Navreet Singh Dibdiba, who died when protesters took out an unauthorised tractor rally on January 26, 2021.
The farmer's family had alleged that he died due to a bullet injury. But the police made it clear that the death was due to injuries suffered when the tractor the man was riding overturned.
'The Wire' report was headlined Autopsy Doctor Told Me He'd Seen the Bullet Injury but Can Do Nothing as His Hands are Tied". Later, The Wire also reported the denial of this version by police.
The FIR was lodged by Rampur Police on January 31, 2021 under Sections 153B (imputations, assertions prejudicial to national integration) and 505 (2) (statements creating or promoting enmity between classes) of the Indian Penal Code on the basis of a complaint by one Sanju Turaiha.
The Republic Day tractor rally, during which farmers clashed with police, was part of a year-long protest against three agri-laws that were later repealed. The protesters had been camping at Delhi's borders.
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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.
