Kumaraswamy slams Congress after EC stops farmhouse feast
Bengaluru (PTI): Officials on election duty on Wednesday allegedly stopped the 'Hosa Todaku' programme at the farmhouse of JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy at Bidadi in Ramanagara district, citing violation of model code of conduct in force for the Lok Sabha polls.
The programme is celebrated a day after Ugadi when many communities in the state have a non-vegetarian feast and the EC action elicited a sharp reaction from the former chief minister, who hit out at the Congress for casting its evil eye on the tradition.
“Ugadi is the Hindu New Year. It is the cultural and religious identity of Hindus. Non-veg feast is a tradition, which is organised on the next day of Ugadi since time immemorial. Now Congress in Karnataka has cast its 'evil eye' on our tradition, culture and practice and is depicting this feast as an act of terrorism,” the JD(S) second-in-command and son of former Prime Minister H D Deve Gowda, said.
Kumaraswamy, who is the NDA candidate from Mandya in the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, said there was nothing special in him organising ‘Hosa Todaku’ ritual at his house and claimed that 'it happens in every Hindu home'.
JD(S) sources said ‘Hoda Todaku’ was organised for the labourers of his farmhouse. "It was not a feast for the general public but a get-together of his workers in Bidadi. The election officers ‘raided’ on a complaint by some Congress leaders,” a JD(S) leader said.
“Now the feast has been stopped. We are worried that all the items that were cooked will go to waste,' he added.
Kumaraswamy alleged that the Congress has set its 'jaundiced eye' on Hindu festivals. "The appeasement of castes and religions has stuck to the Congress party,” he alleged.
Meanwhile, responding to a question, Deputy Chief Minister and State Congress President D K Shivakumar said: 'Our boys had arranged for food for 500 people and had taken permission, but they (JD(S) filed a complaint. Now they have arranged for food... let them do 'Varsha Todaku' (Hosa Todaku) or anything, I'm not bothered."
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.
