DK Shivakumar rejects differences with Siddaramaiah, says together recommended MLC candidates
Bengaluru, May 22: Karnataka Congress president D K Shivakumar on Sunday rejected reports about differences between him and Congress Legislature party leader Siddaramaiah regarding the recommendations made by the state unit on candidates to the party high command for the upcoming MLC polls.
With May 24 being the last date to file nominations for the polls to seven seats of the Karnataka Legislative Council to be elected by MLAs, he said the state unit has sent its recommendations on candidates to the party high command and the decision will be out soon.
"The tradition in the Congress party is, we share our opinion (with the high command). Over 100 aspirants had applied or desired, few others did not apply but have the required qualification. We have sent in our recommendation considering all those, and the high command will take the final decision," Shivakumar said.
Speaking to reporters here, he said the state unit only sends the recommendation but does not take sides as to who should be given the ticket.
To a question on reports about him and Siddaramaiah not being on the same page regarding the recommendations, the KPCC chief said both of them have discussed and unanimously sent in the proposals.
"There are only two seats, how many names can we give? So considering all aspects, we have sent in names. The high command will decide," he added.
The election which will be held on June 3, is necessitated as the term of office of seven members is going to expire on June 14.
The seats will be falling vacant, due to the retirement of MLCs -- Laxman Sangappa Savadi and Lahar Singh Siroya of BJP; Ramappa Timmapur, Allum Veerabhadrappa, Veena Achaiah S of Congress; and H M Ramesha Gowda and Narayana Swamy K V of JD(S).
According to official sources, in this election, each MLC candidate will require a minimum of 29 votes to win, and on the basis of minimum votes required and tallying it with the strength of each party in the Legislative Assembly, the BJP will be able win four seats, Congress two and JD(S) one.
The ruling BJP and JD(S) too have not announced their candidates yet.
The Karnataka BJP unit is said to have recommended the names of former chief minister B S Yediyurappa's son B Y Vijayendra, former deputy chief minister Laxman Savadi (one among retiring MLCs), state vice-president M Rajendra, general secretary Mahesh Tenginkai, SC Morcha president Chalavadi Narayanaswamy, former MLCs M B Bhanuprakash and Siddaraju and Mahila Morcha president Geetha Vivekananda, among others as candidates for MLC seats to their central leadership.
Stating that there is pressure with regards to tickets for the June 10 Rajya Sabha polls, Shivakumar said, "We have brought to the notice of the high command as to how many seats BJP and JD(S) can win."
"...we will see, all options are still open. We will decide based on the directions of the high command. Whether to field candidate for (an extra seat) or to remain quiet or to support others," he said, adding that the party is also keeping a watch on actions of the BJP and JD(S).
To a question about several state leaders including him having an opinion that someone from Karnataka should get Rajya Sabha ticket keeping the 2023 assembly polls in mind, he said, with regards to Rajya Sabha, decisions are always made by the high command in the interest of the party.
The election to four Rajya Sabha seats is necessitated as the term of office of members -- Nirmala Sitharaman (Union Finance Minister) and K C Ramamurthy of BJP, and Jairam Ramesh and late Oscar Fernandes of Congress -- is due to expire on June 30. The last date of filing nominations is May 31.
A candidate needs 45 votes to win in this RS election, and based on the current party position in the Legislative Assembly, the BJP can win two and Congress one, official sources said, adding that the JD(S) can win one provided it gets the support of either one of the parties.
According to sources, while, Congress may once again field Jairam Ramesh from the state, the ruling BJP is said to have recommended ticket for Nirmala Sitharaman to get re-elected, while the names of outgoing Rajya Sabha member K C Ramamurthy, outgoing MLC Lehar Singh Siroya, Nirmal Kumar Surana and entrepreneur Prakash Shetty are doing the rounds for the second seat.
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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.
