Liquor Policy Case: Court Grants CBI Permission to Question K Kavitha in Tihar Jail

GG News Bureau
New Delhi, 6th April. A court in Delhi has granted permission to the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to interrogate Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha in jail in relation to the Delhi liquor policy case. Kavitha was arrested last month by the Enforcement Directorate, which is investigating the money laundering aspect of the alleged scam.

The CBI, which initiated the initial investigation into the liquor policy case, requested the Rouse Avenue courts in Delhi for authorization to question the BRS leader, who is the daughter of the party’s president and former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao.

During the court appearance on Friday, the CBI’s counsel mentioned that Kavitha had ignored previous notices and summons for questioning, and the agency needed to gather information from her regarding the evidence collected during the investigation. The request was approved by the Special Judge for ED and CBI cases, Kaveri Baweja.

The BRS leader, who also serves as a Member of the Legislative Council in Telangana, was arrested by the ED on March 15 following a raid on her residence in Hyderabad.

The agency alleges that Kavitha was part of a group known as the South Group, which reportedly provided a bribe of 100 crore to AAP leaders in return for its members receiving a share of the profitable liquor market in Delhi. This market had a high profit margin of 12% for wholesalers and nearly 185% for retailers under the new excise policy.

Kavitha was remanded to judicial custody for 14 days on March 26 and is currently held in Tihar jail. She has requested urgent interim bail citing her minor son’s upcoming exams, and a decision on her plea is pending.

Kavitha maintains that the charges against her are baseless and fabricated. She has also accused the BJP of engaging in political corruption, claiming that one of the individuals implicated in the scam had made contributions to the party through electoral bonds.

In addition to Kavitha, Delhi Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal, his former deputy Manish Sisodia, and AAP Rajya Sabha MP Sanjay Singh were also arrested in connection with the case. Mr. Singh was granted bail on Tuesday, while the others remain in custody.