Ex-UP minister Swami Prasad Maurya says no intention to go back to BJP
Lucknow, Jan 12: Ex-BJP leader Swami Prasad Maurya on Wednesday said he was not going back to the saffron camp and indicated joining Samajwadi Party on Friday.
Maurya, who quit the party on Tuesday, claimed that his resignation from the cabinet has triggered an earthquake in the BJP.
Meanwhile, a Sultanpur district court during the day issued an arrest warrant against him in a seven years old case in which he was accused of making objectionable comments against Hindu deities.
Asked if Sanghmitra Maurya, his daughter and a BJP MP from Badaun, will follow the suit, he said she would take a call on her own.
Though he hasn't yet announced joining Akhilesh Yadav, the five-time MLA from Padrauna in Kushinagar, thanked the SP chief for welcoming his decision to quit the state cabinet.
Akhilesh had shared a photograph of him with Maurya after the latter's high voltage resignation from the BJP Tuesday.
Asked who else is joining SP with him, Maurya said "everything will be clear on January 14".
Maurya ruled out returning to the BJP despite efforts by its several leaders to placate him.
"I know many small and big leaders of BJP are calling me but I am not taking their calls," he said.
"My decision to quit has triggered an earthquake in the BJP. I pleaded with the leaders for the welfare of Dalits and backwards but they couldn't care less," he said.
Maurya's decision to walk out of the BJP cabinet has triggered a series of resignations by BJP MLAs.
Four MLAs -- Roshan Lal Verma, Brijesh Prajapati, Bhagwati Sagar and Vinay Shakya -- have already announced their exit following him.
Maurya -- who belongs to an OBC caste known by titles such as Maurya, Kushwaha, Saini and Shakya -- later converted to Buddhism -- had crossed over to the BJP ahead of 2017 state elections from Mayawati's Bahujan Samaj Party.
An influential non-Yadav leader, Maurya has a support base in many districts of the Purvanchal region.
He said for five years he raised issues of Dalits, Backwards and deprived section of the society, but the party didn't give two hoots.
Asked if Deputy Chief Minister Keshav Prasad Maurya approached him, Maurya called him a younger brother but added that he is no less out of sorts within the party.
Meanwhile, the Sultanpur MP-MLA court Judge Yogesh Kumar Yadav fixed January 24 as the next date of hearing in the 2014 case.
The court had on January 6 directed Maurya to appear before it on January 12 but he did not appear, lawyer Anil Tiwari said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
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
===================
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.
