UP: Maharajganj MLA takes mud bath to please rain god
Gorakhpur (UP) (PTI): With monsoon playing truant in the region, a group of women in Maharajganj district performed a ritual by soaking local MLA and Nagar Palika chairman in a mud tub to please rain god 'Indra'.
It is an age-old belief of the region that a mud bath to the head of the city pleases rain god who brings rain to the region.
The women of Pipardeura area in Maharajganj also sang while giving a mud bath to BJP MLA Jaimangal Kanojiya and Nagar Palika chairman Krishna Gopal Jaiswal.
It is a belief that a mud bath to the head of the city pleases Indra Dev. The deficient rainfall will affect the paddy yield, one of the women, Munni Devi, said.
It is also believed that to please Indra Dev, children take bath in mud and locally it is known as Kal Kalouti, she added.
MLA Kanojiya and Nagar Palika chairman Jaiswal became happily ready to take a mud bath for rain.
People are restless due to scorching heat and it is an age-old tradition to give a mud bath to please Indra Dev. The women of the city gave us mud bath for rain, Kanojiya said.
Jaiswal said that with a drought-like situation is in front of us, the women only followed the age-old tradition of the region to please the rain god.
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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.
