BJP sends legal notice to Siddaramaiah and D K Shivakumar
Bengaluru: The BJP's Karnataka unit on Friday said it has sent legal notice to the leader of opposition Siddaramaiah and state Congress chief D K Shivakumar for their "baseless" allegations of corruption in the procurement of Covid-19 equipment and supplies. The party has demanded public apology from the two leaders, failing which they have been threatened with legal action.
"On one side Shivakumar and Siddaramaiah say the government was not sharing information with them despite writing twenty letters when the government did not share any information, where did you get this figure, who gave you this," BJP general secretary N Ravi Kumar asked.
Speaking to reporters here, he said, the allegations "are most baseless, irresponsible and far from truth" with an intention to mislead the people and malign the reputation of the government and the Chief Minister.
"How did they say that Rs 4,167 crore has been spent. Our government, Ministers and Chief Minister have said that much amount has not been spent," he said, adding that the two leaders have been given 15 days time to reply to the notice.
Siddaramaiah had last week alleged that the total expenditure of the government relating to COVID was Rs 4,167 crore of which at least Rs 2,000 crore was "pocketed" by ministers and officials.
Refuting this, as many as five ministers had said the overall expenditure of the government is Rs 2,118 crore, with Rs 1,611 crore going for COVID relief measures and Rs 506 crore for purchase of medical equipment.
Stating that in the legal notice it has been mentioned that allegations have caused damage to the party and the government's image, Kumar said they have sought a public apology.
"We have also warned that or else we will be forced to take up legal action in the days to come," he added.
Siddaramaiah while making the allegation had demanded inquiry by a sitting high court judge, which the government has rejected.
Hitting out at Siddaramaiah for "unnecessarily" alleging corruption and seeking an inquiry from a sitting high court judge, Kumar asked the former Chief Minister about his accountability on his Hublot watch that had earlier led to controversy.
"Siddaramaiah repeatedly targets Yediyurappa saying that he had gone to jail, had D K Shivakumar gone for picnic or tour to Delhi (Tihar jail). With what morality is Siddaramaiah sitting next to Shivakumar?" he asked.
"Shivakumar's assets were Rs 251 crore in 2013 and in 2018 it was Rs 840 crore, in five years 200 per cent increase, what business are you doing, please share it with people of state," he added, as he questioned Congress leaders morality.
The allegations constitute a "classic case of slander which constitutes both civil and criminal defamation," the notice read.
BJP spokesperson Ashwath Narayan accused Congress leaders of making "baseless" allegations at the time of COVID-19 with an intention to demoralise doctors and officials.
According to the two BJP leaders, Congress is unable to digest that the government in Karnataka despite difficulties and financial crisis has been able to perform well and has got appreciation from the people.
That's the reason congress leaders are holding protest, press conferences to make such baseless allegations and bring a bad name to the BJP, its government and Chief Minister Yediyurappa, they added.
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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.
