Big challenge before Rahul, Priyanka to revive Congress: Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut
Mumbai(PTI): Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut on Sunday said Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra have a big challenge before them of reviving their party.
In his weekly column 'Rohkthok' in the Sena mouthpiece Saamana, Raut, whose party shares power with the Congress and NCP in Maharashtra, said the Gandhi siblings should take inspiration from Lokmanya Tilak, who had transformed the Congress into a weapon of political revolution.
Raut, who is the executive editor of Saamana, met the two Congress leaders last week in New Delhi.
He said during their meeting, Rahul Gandhi told him the system of creating and building leaders has stopped in the Congress and that the latter never disrespected senior party leaders.
Raut quoted Gandhi as saying that he had requested senior leader Ghulam Nabi Azad to take charge of the Congress' Jammu & Kashmir unit after his Rajya Sabha term expired, but the latter refused.
"He can become the chief minister again after elections. But, he refused saying the Congress didn't exist there. Azad ji has been the chief minister there and he thinks the Congress doesn't exist there,'' Raut said quoting Rahul Gandhi.
The Sena leader further mentioned that when he pointed out during the conversation that Azad was holding public meetings in Kashmir, Gandhi said "yes...the reasons behind that could be different".
The former Congress president said the party had given a lot to its elder leaders. They are taking a different stand when the party needs them. "What can I do?" Raut said attributing the comments to Rahul Gandhi.
Raut in his column described Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra as different personalities whose styles of functioning were also very different, but said there was a unanimity between them.
''Both have a big challenge of reviving the Congress,'' the Rajya Sabha member said.
"If you expect a quick stand from her (Priyanka Gandhi) in any political discussion...she says she will have to discuss with her brother," Raut said, adding that the discussions between him and Priyanka Gandhi were related to various issues, including those pertaining to the forthcoming Goa and Uttar Pradesh Assembly elections as well as national politics.
The Sena leader said when he raised the issue of MVA leaders in Maharashtra being targeted using central agencies, Priyanka Gandhi said her family was also facing a similar situation.
He quoted her as saying that when she went to Lakhimpur Kheri (after the alleged killing of some farmers a few months back), her husband got "69 notices from the Income Tax (department) in one day".
Raut said Priyanka Gandhi told him she will not backtrack, and continue to fight.
He also said Rahul Gandhi told him that during Captain Amarinder Singh's tenure as the chief minister of Punjab, the Congress's graph declined.
The Sena leader said Gandhi told him that during a poll, Singh had got "only six per cent votes" as CM, while those who were not even in the chief ministerial race got more votes than Singh.
Singh was told implement promises made to the people, but the response was cold, Raut said quoting the former Congress chief.
Further quoting Gandhi from their conversation, Raut said, "He (Singh) was told to do something or else the party will have to take action. The party seniors stood by Singh and told me not to take a stern action against him. If Singh wasn't changed as the CM, the party would have been finished in Punjab."
The Congress leader also told that even if West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee criticises him or the Congress, he will not react to it, Raut said.
Notably, Banerjee during her recent Mumbai visit took a veiled dig at Gandhi, saying one cannot be abroad most of the time.
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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.
