PM Modi wanted BJP, NCP to come together in Maharashtra to form govt in 2019: Sharad Pawar
Pune, Dec 30: Nationalist Congress Party chief Sharad Pawar has claimed Prime Minister Narendra Modi wanted the BJP and the NCP to come together in Maharashtra to form government in 2019, but he told the PM that "it was not possible".
Reacting to Pawar's comments, Shiv Sena MP Sanjay Raut, whose party shares power with the NCP and Congress in Maharashtra, on Thursday claimed that after the 2019 Assembly polls, the BJP was desperate for power and ready to hold anyone's hand for it.
Raut also said they were aware who was talking to whom and therefore, the BJP did not succeed in its "attempt" to form government in the state.
After the 2019 Maharashtra Assembly elections, the Shiv Sena parted ways with long-term ally BJP over the issue of sharing the chief ministerial post. The Uddhav Thackeray-led party then forged an alliance with the NCP and Congress to form the Maha Vikas Aghadi (MVA) government in the state.
On Wednesday, during an event organised by Marathi daily 'Loksatta', Pawar was asked if during discussions after the 2019 state polls, he had told Modi and Union minister Amit Shah that the NCP and BJP could come together if the latter replaced Devendra Fadnavis as chief minister.
To this, Pawar said it is true he and PM Modi had meetings.
"It was his wish that we (NCP and BJP) come together. However, I went to his (PM's) office and told him it was not possible. I told him that we do not want to keep him in the dark. Our stand is different," said Pawar.
Questioned about the PM's reaction to his response, Pawar said Modi asked him to "think over it".
Pawar said after the Maharashtra Assembly elections, for almost 90 days, the government was not formed.
With this proposal, PM Modi might have thought that by doing this (aligning with the NCP ), a stable government could be formed in the state, he said.
When asked about his views that the BJP, which targeted the NCP over various alleged scams during elections campaigns had sought help from the same party, Pawar said he would not say that the BJP sought help from the NCP.
He also said that after the Maharashtra Assembly elections, during several meetings between the Congress and NCP, the bitterness between leaders of the two parties had increased.
"Perhaps, the BJP leadership thought that an advantage can be taken of this situation, and that is what they tried to explore," he said.
Pawar also recalled his one statement after the 2019 state elections -- that if Fadnavis was short of some MLAs to form government, the NCP would think about it seriously -- "further widened the gap between the Shiv Sena and BJP".
After this, the Shiv Sena was sure that BJP leader Fandavis will make a move.
Notably, before the MVA came to power, Fadnavis was sworn in as the CM in a hush hush early morning ceremony at the Raj Bhavan, with NCP's Ajit Pawar as hit deputy. However, Fadnavis quit as the CM four days later.
Meanwhile, reacting to Pawar's comments, Shiv Sena's spokesperson Sanjay Raut claimed that in 2019, the BJP was "desperate" for power and therefore, it was ready to "hold anyone's hand".
If Sharad Pawar is saying this, it must be true because Prime Minister Narendra Modi had urged Pawar to stake claim for power in Maharashtra, Raut told reporters in Nashik.
There was transparency among us (MVA allies). We were aware who was talking to whom and therefore, the BJP did not succeed in its attempt to form government in Maharashtra," he said.
There was transparency even in Ajit Pawar joining hands with the BJP to form government (before the MVA came to power) and therefore, Ajit Pawar later returned (to the NCP fold), Raut said.
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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.
