Sidhu Moosewala case: Gangster's father says lawyer boycotting his son
New Delhi (PTI): Jailed gangster Lawrence Bishnoi's father on Monday moved the Supreme Court challenging various orders, including the transit remand order of a Delhi court, in the murder case of singer Sidhu Moosewala and also complained that lawyers in Punjab have boycotted his son and are not willing to represent him.
A vacation bench of Justices Surya Kant and JB Pardiwala was told by advocate Sangram Singh Saron that they have challenged the orders of the Punjab and Haryana High Court and of a Delhi court granting transit remand but since no lawyer in Mansa court in Punjab is taking up Bishnoi's case, he had approached the top court.
The bench said this is absolutely unjustified and the petitioner can approach the high court to provide Bishnoi legal aid counsel.
These legal aid counsels cannot refuse the case or they would be delisted from the panel , the bench said, asking the counsel to approach the Punjab and Haryana High Court to provide them legal aid counsel.
Saron submitted that he is challenging the order of Delhi court for transit remand as it is contrary to certain directions passed by the top court on Bishnoi's petition.
The bench said, Since the Punjab Police is investigating the case, it is at a very nascent stage. It would not be appropriate for this court to interfere at this stage .
It noted the murder has taken place in Mansa, Punjab and therefore it is the jurisdiction of Punjab Police to investigate the case and they can very well take him (Bishnoi) on remand.The bench agreed to hear the plea of Bishnoi's father on July 11.
On June 14, a Delhi court here had granted Punjab Police the transit remand of Bishnoi to take him to Punjab in the Moosewala killing case.
The court had passed the order as Punjab Police produced Bishnoi before it after formally arresting him in the case. It had directed the state police to produce Bishnoi before the Chief Judicial Magistrate in Mansa court in connection with the case.
The Punjab Police had said the killing of Moosewala seemed to be the result of an inter-gang rivalry and that the Bishnoi gang was involved in it.
Moosewala was shot dead on May 29 by unidentified assailants in Punjab's Mansa district, a day after the state government curtailed his security cover. His cousin and a friend, who were travelling in a jeep with him, were also injured in the attack.
Bishnoi is facing trial for the offence committed under stringent MCOCA (Maharashtra Control of Organised Crime Act) here and was lodged in the Tihar jail.
On June 2, the Punjab and Haryana High Court had dismissed a petition of Bishnoi who was seeking appropriate directions for not handing over his custody to the Punjab Police in the murder case.
Bishnoi, who is suspected to be involved in Moosewala's killing, had moved the Punjab and Haryana High Court after withdrawing his plea from the Delhi High Court in which he said he feared he would be killed in a fake encounter by the Punjab Police, and sought necessary safeguards.
In his petition before the high court, Bishnoi had sought directions that the judicial magistrate in Mansa be restrained from handing over his custody to the investigating agency in Punjab.
He had sought issuance of appropriate directions for questioning him through online/video conference facility or within the precincts of Tihar Jail, New Delhi.
He had also submitted that there was a serious threat to his life and a possibility that upon being produced or while being brought from custody in connection with the FIR registered by the Mansa police, he can be put to harm or liquidated by adopting extrajudicial means.
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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.
