Congress in 'deep freezer', opposition forces want Mamata Banerjee to lead: TMC mouthpiece
Kolkata, Dec 3: Amid the ongoing war of words between the TMC and the Congress, the ruling camp in West Bengal on Friday launched a fresh attack on the grand old party, stating that it has gone into a "deep freezer" with opposition forces now looking up to Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee to fill the vacuum.
The TMC, which had been inducting disgruntled Congress leaders in its fold, iterated in its mouthpiece 'Jago Bangla' that it was committed to fight the BJP.
Referring to Prashant Kishor's latest tweet against the Congress, the article said it's not just the poll strategist but also Congress leaders themselves who are criticising the party leadership.
"The TMC has been saying this for a long time that the Congress is a spent force. They don't have the zeal to fight the BJP. The party is so bogged down by infighting that it hardly has time or energy to build an opposition. The UPA does not exist," the article titled 'Congress in deep freezer' said.
"The country currently needs an alternative front and opposition parties have given that responsibility to Mamata Banerjee. They are looking up to her to fill the vacuum. She is presently the most popular opposition face in the country," it said.
Kishor, on Thursday, took to Twitter and said that Congress' leadership is not the "divine right" of an individual, especially when the party has "lost more than 90% elections in last 10 years", in an apparent dig at senior leader Rahul Gandhi.
Banerjee during her recent visit to Mumbai had said that "UPA doesn't exist".
The ruling camp of West Bengal, which is trying to expand its footprint nationally, has been up in arms against the grand old party over its alleged failure to counter the BJP. In a massive jolt to the opposition Congress in Meghalaya, 12 of its 17 MLAs, led by former chief minister Mukul Sangma, joined the TMC last week.
The TMC, in its bid to enter Tripura's political arena in a big way, recently engaged in a bitter battle with the BJP during the municipal elections there. It is also gearing up to contest the assembly elections in Goa to pitch Banerjee firmly as the foremost anti-BJP opposition voice.
Earlier, the TMC, in its mouthpiece, had termed the Congress as an "incapable and incompetent" party, and maintained that the Mamata Banerjee-led camp cannot be blamed for Congress leaders jumping ship.
The ties between the Congress and the TMC got further strained after 'Jago Bangla' recently claimed that party supremo Mamata Banerjee, and not Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, has emerged as the face of the opposition against Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
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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.
