Rahul Gandhi to address 2 public meetings in Karnataka tomorrow
Bengaluru (PTI): Congress leader Rahul Gandhi will be in party-governed Karnataka on Wednesday to campaign for the upcoming Lok Sabha elections, during which he will address public meetings in Mandya and Kolar.
It is his first visit to the state after the poll schedule was announced a month ago.
Interestingly, the Congress is facing JD(S), which is BJP's ally, in both seats.
While it will be a direct contest between JD(S) leader H D Kumaraswamy and Congress' Venkataramane Gowda, popularly known as 'Star Chandru' in Mandya, the fight is between Congress' K V Gowtham and JD(S)' M Mallesh Babu in Kolar.
The Congress had secured only one seat in the 2019 general elections in Karnataka, which has a total of 28 constituencies. The BJP had bagged 25 while an independent candidate backed by the party had also emerged victorious. JD(S) which fought the elections in alliance with the Congress then, won one seat.
Chief Minister Siddaramaiah has said the party will win 15 to 20 seats in the coming elections in the state.
"Rahul Gandhi is coming to Mandya and Kolar tomorrow. He is landing in the afternoon (in Bengaluru), he will directly go to Mandya and from there he will go to Kolar. Then he will come to Bengaluru from where he is scheduled to take a flight back to Delhi," Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar said.
Asked whether party leader Priyanka Gandhi will be coming to campaign, Shivakumar, also the state Congress chief, said, "dates have to be taken, timing has to be adjusted, time is very short. She has pressure from other states too. We have requested her to come for one day, let's see."
According to Congress sources, Rahul Gandhi is scheduled to land in Bengaluru around 1.20 pm from where he will go to Mandya by a chopper and address a poll rally at around 2:10 pm. He will then fly to Kolar to address a public meeting at around 4 pm.
Both Mandya and Kolar are going to polls in the first of the two-phase elections in Karnataka.
While 14 segments in the southern part of the state will see polling on April 26, the second phase of voting in the northern districts will be held on May seven.
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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.
