Man with gun goes close to CM Siddaramaiah, garlands minister during election campaign
Bengaluru, Apr 9: A gun-wielding man on Monday went close to Karnataka Chief Minister Siddaramaiah while he was on an open vehicle here, and garlanded Transport Minister Ramalinga Reddy standing next to him.
The incident happened at Bhairasandra in the city when Siddaramaiah was campaigning for Reddy's daughter and Congress' Lok Sabha candidate Sowmya Reddy.
The man, whom police identified as Riyaz, suddenly climbed on the vehicle with a gun fastened to his waist.
Raising slogans in support of Congress, Riyaz garlanded Reddy, his daughter Sowmya and others.
As he was getting down from the vehicle, Siddaramaiah and others on the vehicle noticed the gun.
Police said Riyaz has been carrying a gun since a murderous assault on him a few years ago, and he has been exempted from surrendering his gun.
ALSO READ: Congress government in Karnataka stands robust and stable: CM Siddaramaiah
In a post on the microblogging site 'X', the BJP targeted the chief minister, saying this proves that "those who garland" Siddaramaiah are hooligans, rowdies, street thugs.
"Gun-wielding rowdies, who used to be seen in the birthday posters, are now posing in front of the society with guns and garlands the CM and deputy chief minister in the rallies. Although the election code of conduct is in force, they are carrying guns and demonstrating like this to intimidate the voters in the area," the party said.
ಮುಖ್ಯಮಂತ್ರಿ @siddaramaiah ಅವರಿಗೆ ಹಾರ ಹಾಕುವವರು ಸನ್ಮಾನ ಮಾಡುವವರು ಗೂಂಡಾಗಳು, ರೌಡಿಗಳು, ಬೀದಿ ಪುಂಡರು ಎನ್ನುವುದು ಸಾಬೀತಾಗಿದೆ.
— BJP Karnataka (@BJP4Karnataka) April 8, 2024
ಇಷ್ಟುದಿನ ಹುಟ್ಟುಹಬ್ಬದ ಫ್ಲೆಕ್ಸ್ಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ಕಾಣಿಸುತ್ತಿದ್ದ ಗನ್ ಹಿಡಿದ ರೌಡಿಗಳು, ಇದೀಗ ಸಿಎಂ, ಡಿಸಿಎಂ ಅವರ ರ್ಯಾಲಿಗಳಲ್ಲಿ ರಾಜಾರೋಷವಾಗಿ ಗನ್ ಹಿಡಿದು ಹಾರ ಹಾಕಿ ಸಮಾಜದ ಮುಂದೆ ಪೋಸ್… pic.twitter.com/r9paiEgw15
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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.
