Rahul Gandhi video: Chhattisgarh cops to return, seek legal options against UP counterparts
Noida(PTI): A Chhattisgarh Police team camping here to arrest a TV news anchor over a "doctored video" of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi is expected to return Thursday, with officials saying it is exploring legal options against its counterparts in Noida and Ghaziabad.
The 11-member team from Raipur, led by a deputy superintendent of police, landed in Ghaziabad on Tuesday morning to arrest Zee News anchor Rohit Ranjan. The anchor and others have been booked for airing the misleading video on his show on July 1.
However, the team from Congress-governed Chhattisgarh could not arrest Ranjan as police officials from Noida and Ghaziabad in BJP-ruled Uttar Pradesh whisked him away a few hours earlier.
On Wednesday, the visiting police team issued summons to Ranjan and some of his colleagues to join the probe in Raipur on July 12 to get their statements recorded in connection with the FIR lodged there.
Ranjan was arrested by the Noida police in connection with a probe into a case lodged by it on a complaint by Zee Media group over the video.
The Noida police on Tuesday night announced it had released Ranjan from the police station itself following an inquiry as the offence invoked in the case was a bailable one, while the Chhattisgarh police team, which had an arrest warrant and a court order for his arrest, declared the anchor an "absconder" on Wednesday.
"The Chhattisgarh police team had come to arrest the TV anchor but the local police in Ghaziabad and Noida obstructed the procedure. The accused is now untraceable, and the local police are not sharing any information about his whereabouts," an official privy to the probe told PTI.
"The team from Raipur is expected to return home later on Thursday. They are now seeking legal options available to them against the Ghaziabad and Noida police," the official claimed.
Meanwhile, the anchor, who is facing several FIRs in different states for the doctored video, on Thursday again sought urgent hearing from the Supreme Court on his plea seeking protection from coercive action for the alleged offence.
A vacation bench headed by Justice Indira Banerjee, which had on Wednesday ordered listing of the plea for hearing on Thursday, said it was awaiting assignment from the chief justice.
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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.
