Mahesh Shetty Timarodi’s remark echoes in Assembly; Government vows unhesitating legal action
Bengaluru: A purported statement attributed to Mahesh Shetty Timarodi, claiming that Chief Minister Siddaramaiah was responsible for 24 murders, reverberated in the Karnataka Legislative Assembly on Monday. The government announced that legal action would be initiated against him without hesitation.
Raising the issue in the House, Leader of Opposition R. Ashoka said that the same individual who repeatedly insults Dharmasthala has now accused the Chief Minister of involvement in 24 killings, which he described as a grave insult to the state’s highest office. Ashoka questioned whether the government would form a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into this allegation, as it had done in connection with the Dharmasthala case.
Several BJP members, including MLA Suresh, demanded the immediate arrest of Timarodi, accusing him of indulging in a dangerous trend of maligning anyone who speaks positively about religious institutions.
Deputy Chief Minister D.K. Shivakumar intervened, cautioning against giving undue prominence to Timarodi by repeatedly mentioning his name. He noted that Timarodi had also made remarks against the BJP’s national general secretary. “The government is observing everything closely, and the Home Department will take firm action,” Shivakumar said.
Home Minister Dr. G. Parameshwara later informed the Assembly that multiple cases had already been registered against Timarodi and that instructions had been issued to proceed with legal measures over his latest comments.
However, it subsequently emerged that Timarodi’s alleged remark had been distorted. According to reports, the viral video was edited to suggest that he directly accused the Chief Minister, whereas in reality he was referring to a statement made by BJP MLA Harish Poonja. This edited clip became the basis of the controversy discussed in the Assembly.
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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.
