Amarinder Singh to meet Amit Shah on Thursday to discuss farmers' stir
Chandigarh, Oct 27: Former Punjab Chief Minister Amarinder Singh said he will meet Union Home Minister Amit Shah on Thursday to discuss possible solutions to the ongoing farmers' stir against the Centre's three farm laws.
Singh on Wednesday said he will be meeting Shah along with some agricultural experts.
Tomorrow I am going to meet Home Minister Shah and 25-30 people will go with me, he said while addressing the media here during which he also said that he is on the verge of launching a political party and would announce its launch as soon as the Election Commission of India approves its name and symbol.
I think I can help in finding a solution as I have been the chief minister of Punjab and am also an agriculturist, said Singh.
He said he had met the Union home minister thrice in the past on farmers' issues.
While there could be no pre-decided formula for the resolution of farmers' stir, something will emerge during the talks as both sides the Central government as well as farmers -- want a resolution to the crisis triggered by the farm laws, he said.
He made it clear that he had not met any farmer leaders over the issue.
Singh said he had deliberately not interfered in the matter as the farmers did not want politicians to be involved in it.
The farmer leaders had four inconclusive meetings with the Centre but backchannel talks have been going on, he added.
Singh had earlier also met Shah in Delhi and had discussed the prolonged farmers' stir with him while urging him to resolve the crisis urgently with the repeal of the three farm laws.
Singh had said any seat arrangement that he might make with the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) would be subject to a resolution of the farmers' issue in their interest.
A large number of farmers, mostly from Punjab, Haryana and UP, have been camping at the Delhi borders since November 26 last year, demanding the repeal of the three new farm laws.
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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.
