Siddaramaiah, Yatnal trade barbs in Assembly over remarks on ‘skull cap-wearing voters’
Bengaluru: Chief Minister Siddaramaiah and BJP MLA Basanagouda Patil Yatnal engaged in a heated exchange in the Karnataka Assembly after Yatnal admitted his controversial remark that he did not seek votes from people wearing skull caps.
Siddaramaiah strongly countered Yatnal’s statement, warning that such comments would politically isolate him. “If you say so, you can never become Chief Minister, nor will you come to power. In the next election, you will be completely defeated. Our votes will never go with you because you are against Scheduled Castes, against backward classes, and against minorities,” the Chief Minister said.
The verbal duel continued as Yatnal taunted Siddaramaiah, reminding him that he was once expelled from the JD(S). “Whoever gets expelled, does he become Chief Minister?” Yatnal asked.
Siddaramaiah shot back, “It will be very happy if you become a Chief Minister, but from which party will you become the CM? You have been expelled from the BJP, you build your own party if you want to become Chief Minister.”
Yatnal responded that he was ready to launch a “non-adjustment political party,” claiming it would not harm the BJP but instead benefit it. Siddaramaiah quipped that he should indeed form such a party if Congress were to gain from it.
The argument escalated further with Yatnal declaring that this would be Siddaramaiah’s last term as Chief Minister. Siddaramaiah, however, dismissed his claims and retorted, “I will not become the Chief Minister. You should not become the next Chief Minister either. For that, form a new party.”
Yatnal insisted that if Siddaramaiah steps aside, Congress votes would shift to his side. To this, Siddaramaiah firmly said, “For no reason will our votes go with them because they are opponents of Scheduled Castes, opponents of backward classes, opponents of minorities.”
At one point, Yatnal told Speaker U.T. Khader that he, would float a party. Yatnal maintained, “We are only the opponents of the traitors of the country, not the opponents of SCs.”
Seizing the moment, Siddaramaiah pressed Yatnal again: “Who openly said that we don’t want the votes of those who wear skull caps?” Yatnal admitted without hesitation, “Yes, I was the one who said I don’t want votes. What is it? I have no fear.”
Siddaramaiah then warned that such politics would only ensure Yatnal never came to power. “You will not become the Chief Minister for any reason, you will not come to power next year, you will completely lose in the next election,” he said.
Yatnal countered, claiming that the BJP would win 130 seats and replace Congress. Siddaramaiah, however, asserted that the Congress would return to power in 2028. “It is 100% true. For whatever reason, whether it is BJP or JD(S), nobody else can come to power. Yatnal is now an expelled member of the BJP, an independent. He cannot come to power.”
During the debate, Siddaramaiah also spoke about instability within the JD(S). He recalled that when he was party president, the JD(S) had won 59 seats, but that number later fell drastically to just 18. He remarked that alliances, including with the BJP, might be the only way for the JD(S) to remain politically relevant.
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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.
