Case of Delhi excise policy scam: High Court requests ED’s response about K Kavitha’s bail request

Case involving the Delhi excise policy scandal: On May 10, the Delhi High Court sent a notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) about K Kavitha, the leader of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), who is being investigated for money laundering in connection with the excise policy scam.

After a special court in the nation’s capital on May 6 rejected Kavitha’s frequent bail requests in cases under investigation by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), she filed a petition with the high court.

The Rouse Avenue Court’s Special Judge, Kaveri Baweja, denied her plea due to the seriousness and severity of the offense, the character of the accusations made against her, and the offenses mentioned in the case.

Kavitha is under court supervision

Kavitha, the daughter of BRS chairman and former Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, is now being held in judicial custody till May 14 in the case of the CBI and until May 20 in the case of the ED. The high court scheduled the next hearing on May 24 and requested ED’s answer about her bail plea on Friday.

The investigation into the participation of public workers and private individuals, as well as the inquiry into the flow of ill-gotten money (proceeds of crime), has reached a critical level, according to the special court’s observations.

The judge had observed that, on the surface, Kavitha seemed to be the main organizer of the criminal conspiracy, which was formed in order to obtain favorable provisions in the now-cancelled Delhi Excise Policy 2021–22 and to collect and pay upfront money to the Aam Aadmi Party through the co-accused.

During the hearings, the court observed that “her role in demanding upfront money and the alleged payment thereof for favourable provisions in the excise policy have also been highlighted.”

Justifications for K Kavitha’s bail

After being arrested by the ED, Kavitha had said that she needed medical attention and claimed hypertension as justification for her release. Regarding this, the court said that her issues had been resolved and that the materials she had relied upon were discovered to be older medical records, dating from 2013 forward.

When Kavitha was in Tihar Jail on April 11, she was first taken into custody by the ED and then by the CBI.