BJP trying to destabilise Maha govt with eye on presidential polls, claims Mallikarjun Kharge
New Delhi, Jun 23: Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge on Thursday accused the BJP and the Centre of attempting to destabilise the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra to form its own government and get the numbers for the upcoming the presidential election.
The Leader of Opposition in the Rajya Sabha said the BJP has been making similar attempts in the past to topple non-Congress governments across the country and one has seen this happen in Karnataka, Uttarakhand, Goa, Madhya Pradesh and Manipur in the past.
Kharge said he has held talks with Shiv Sena leader Sanjay Raut and others and they want that the rebels return to Mumbai and raise their grievances before the chief minister and the Shiv Sena chief who will resolve their issues.
He alleged that the BJP has played havoc with non-BJP governments in the past and they are trying the same thing in Maharashtra also.
The BJP is using ED, CBI and other agencies to destabilise non-BJP governments and that is what is being done in Maharashtra, The Congress leader alleged.
"The BJP government is making attempts to bring down the Maharashtra government. The BJP first took the Shiv Sena MLAs to Surat in Gujarat and then to Guwahati, which has BJP governments.
"One should understand that this is the game being played by the BJP and it wants to bring down the Maha Vikas Aghadi government in Maharashtra which was formed by the Shiv Sena, Congress and NCP to ensure development in the state," he told reporters.
The MVA government is functioning strongly but the BJP is making all attempts to destabilise it, Kharge said, alleging the BJP wants that there should not be any non-BJP government anywhere in the country.
"I can say this with confidence that the Central government and the BJP are responsible for destabilising the Maharashtra government," he said.
"The BJP also wants its numbers in the presidential election. It wants to topple the Maharashtra government during the Presidential election to get the numbers."
Terming it an internal matter of the Shiv Sena, Kharge said, "We will together fight and strengthen the Maha Vikas Aghadi government. We are ready to offer any kind of help in this regard."
He said his party is going to stand with Maha Vikas Aghadi and "we want to work together".
Asked about Sanjay Raut's statement that they are ready to move out of the MVA government provided the rebels return to Mumbai, the Congress leader said, "The MVA government will be there and the rebels will return and I hope they will resolve their issues by bringing them before the Shiv Sena chief and CLP leader Uddhav Thackeray."
"Their issues will be resolved soon after their return to Mumbai and that is why Shiv Sena leaders want them to return and raise their issues before the Sena leadership. If they are not satisfied then that is another question," he said.
Whether or not they will come out of the MVA government, Kharge said one must remember that the Maha Vikas Aghadi was formed to ensure Maharashtra's development all the three parties are working towards it.
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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.
