Punjab polls: Kejriwal says public should decide CM's name
Chandigarh(PTI): Aam Aadmi Party national convener Arvind Kejriwal on Thursday said his party will be asking the general public as to who should be the party's chief ministerial face in the Punjab Assembly polls even as he indicated that his own preference for the post was state unit president Bhagwant Mann.
Kejriwal, however, ruled himself out in the race.
The Delhi chief minister in the presence of AAP's Punjab unit president and MP Mann and party senior leader Raghav Chadha launched a mobile number on which people can give their feedback by 5 pm till January 17 by recording their voice, sending SMS or WhatsApp as to who among the party leaders they want to be declared as the chief ministerial candidate.
"No, Arvind Kejriwal is not in this race, let me clarify I am not in it," Kejriwal said.
He had in June 2021 announced that the party's chief ministerial face for the 2022 Punjab Assembly polls will be from the Sikh community, and said the entire Punjab will be proud of him.
Kejriwal said though he wanted Mann be declared as CM face, but the latter insisted that the people of Punjab should make this decision.
"Bhagwant Mann is my younger brother, he is AAP's tall leader. I said Bhagwant Mann should be made, but he said people should be asked first. He said the practice of deciding the name of the CM candidate behind closed doors should be stopped," Kejriwal told reporters here.
Mann said when he was told that his name will be declared as chief ministerial face then the Sangrur MP told Kejriwal that the "people should be asked whom they wish to see CM amongst the party leaders".
The Delhi chief minister said this may be for the first time in independent India that a party is asking people who should be the party's CM face.
"On mobile number 7074870748 the people can call, send message or WhatsApp and the party leader whom majority people will like will be announced as the AAP's choice for the CM face," said Kejriwal.
"The mobile number will be open till 5 pm on January 17. Based on the response of people, the AAP will declare its chief ministerial candidate," said Kejriwal.
Replying to question, Kejriwal said, "My personal choice is not important, but what people of Punjab say, the party will announce the name of that candidate".
"We want to give good candidate, who is liked by people. We have left the decision on three crore Punjabis now," he said.
Punjab goes to polls on February 14.
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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.
