Vikas Dubey ordered firing at police team in Bikru village: Arrested aide
Lucknow: Following his arrest on Tuesday, Vikas Dubey's alleged aide Shashikant alias Sonu Pandey denied killing DSP Devendra Mishra and said the slain gangster had ordered the firing at the police team that raided his house on the night intervening July 2 and 3.
Pandey made the claims to a TV news channel while being taken away by the police after his arrest.
On being asked who killed DSP Mishra, he told the new channel that he did not kill him.
"They (policemen) were killed very brutally (badi berahami se maara gayaa)," Pandey told the channel in a very feeble voice.
When asked why did he flee from his house and why did he get his head tonsured, he said, "My mother told me to run away (Maa ne bhagaa diyaa thaa). I got my head tonsured because my father (Prem Kumar Pandey) is no more."
Prem Kumar Pandey was killed in the encounter with the police in Bikru village.
Two of Vikas Dubey's alleged accomplices, Prem Prakash Pandey and Atul Dubey, were killed by the police in a shootout in Kanpur.
When asked how the firing was started from the rooftop of Dubey's house, Shashikant said, "It was immediately ordered (on the raid by the police team). Vikas Dubey gave the orders."
In response to a question by the reporter, Pandey said, "He (Dubey) did not spare anyone."
On being asked if he (Dubey) also used to target girls, Pandey replied in positive.
Pandey was arrested and two rifles of the Uttar Pradesh police, looted during the Kanpur ambush earlier this month, were also recovered, police said on Tuesday.
With this, all weapons looted during the ambush have been recovered, they said.
Additional Director General of Police (Law and Order) Prashant Kumar said Dubey's aide Shashikant alias Sonu Pandey was carrying a reward of Rs 50,000 on his arrest.
"Shashikant Pandey was an accused in the killing of the eight policemen (in the Kanpur ambush). He was arrested from Chaubeypur around 2.50 am," the police officer told reporters in Kanpur.
"During interrogation, he admitted to his involvement in the encounter at Bikru village in Kanpur dehat. It was revealed that the looted AK-47 of police was hidden in Dubey's house while the INSAS rifle was at Shashikant's house," the ADG said.
Let the Truth be known. If you read VB and like VB, please be a VB Supporter and Help us deliver the Truth to one and all.
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
===================
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.
