Opposition BJP hits out at Rajasthan CM Ashok Gehlot for targeting Sachin Pilot
Jaipur, Jun 27: The Rajasthan BJP on Monday hit out at Chief Minister Ashok Gehlot for accusing his former deputy Sachin Pilot of being involved in a conspiracy to dislodge the Congress government in the state.
Former state deputy chief minister Pilot and 18 MLAs close to him had rebelled against Gehlot in 2020, triggering a political crisis in the state.
Gehlot had on Saturday said Union minister Gajendra Singh Shekhawat's recent remarks over the rebellion against him two years ago prove that he in connivance with Pilot tried to topple the state government.
Leader of Opposition in the Rajasthan Assembly Gulab Chand Kataria claimed that Gehlot is annoyed by the fact that Pilot enjoys widespread public support.
"Sachin Pilot has the support of the people while Gehlot and (parliamentary affairs minister Shanti) Dhariwal do not. Gehlot wants to throw him out so that he can rule like an autocrat," he said.
Kataria's deputy Rajendra Rathore called Pilot Neelkanth (the one with a blue throat), which is another name of Lord Shiva, who consumed a deadly poison for the benefit of living beings.
"Rajasthan's CM and his ministers are crossing the limits of politics of insult. I would like to thank Sachin Pilot for his patience, who was sometimes called useless and sometimes a conspirator, Rathore told reporters in Bharatpur.
He has become Neelkanth. But when Neelkanth spews poison, an earthquake comes. When will that earthquake hit the Congress, I don't know," Rathore said, adding that Pilot's patience should not be tested.
Has anyone stopped the chief minister from taking action against Pilot if he allegedly tried to topple the government in the state? Ever since Congress leader Rahul Gandhi has praised Pilot for his patience, the Rajasthan chief minister has become restless. Gehlot is only worried about saving his chair, he added.
Shekhawat had said at a meeting in Chomu town of Jaipur that Pilot missed the opportunity and had the government changed, water would have reached state areas through the Eastern Rajasthan Canal Project.
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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.
