Not offered ticket, Mandya MP Sumalatha to announce decision on election on April 3
Bengaluru, Mar 30: Mandya sitting MP Sumalatha Ambareesh on Saturday said she would announce her decision on the upcoming election on April 3, given that she was not renominated and NDA constituents BJP and JD(S) decided to field H D Kumaraswamy from her constituency.
The multi-lingual film actress-turned-politician convened a meeting of her supporters at her Bengaluru residence to decide her future course of action, with the change in political scenario.
Addressing her supporters, she said, "I will make my decision public at Mandya on April 3 because it is my duty to keep the voters of Mandya informed about any of my decisions."
Sumalatha had won the 2019 Lok Sabha election as an independent candidate with the BJP's backing, and defeated Nikhil Kumaraswamy, the grandson of former prime minister and JD(S) patriarch H D Deve Gowda and son of former chief minister H D Kumaraswamy.
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However, the Janata Dal (Secular) is now BJP's ally, and Kumaraswamy will be contesting the election as the NDA candidate.
In order to pacify Sumalatha, BJP state President and Yediyurappa's son B Y Vijayendra called on her on Friday but Sumalatha said she would consult her supporters on Saturday before taking a final call.
After the meeting with her supporters on Saturday, she told them that her political career had begun with their blessings. She also praised the fans of her husband and eminent Kannada film actor-turned politician late Ambareesh, who stood by her.
"I have people on the stage who have been supporting Ambareesh for the past 30 years. They shared their pain with me. They were those who gave me confidence to fight the election though I did not have any political experience," Sumalatha said.
"Though no big names were behind us except for a crowd of diehard fans of Ambareesh, the people of Mandya did not bother about it and wholeheartedly supported me," the independent MP said.
Sumalatha was expecting a BJP ticket and had met all the BJP central leaders, including Prime Minister Narendra Modi, Union Home Minister Amit Shah, BJP National President J P Nadda and former Karnataka Chief Minister B S Yediyurappa.
However, the party decided to reserve the Mandya seat for its ally JD(S). Late on Friday, the JD(S) officially declared that Kumaraswamy will be their candidate.
BJP Karnataka in-charge Radha Mohan Das Agarwal who first announced that Mandya seat would be reserved for JD(S) said Sumalatha has a bright future in politics'.
According to BJP sources, the party is likely to offer the Mandya MP a Rajya Sabha ticket.
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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.
