By : Shrishti Mehra
A Delhi court on Tuesday prolonged the court detention of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha until May 20.
A Delhi court on Tuesday extended Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha’s judicial custody until May 20 in connection with the Delhi excise policy issue.
The Rouse Avenue Court postponed hearing arguments on the sixth supplemental chargesheet presented by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with the investigation.
The Enforcement Department (ED) submitted a nearly 200-page prosecution chargesheet and annexures under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) last Friday.
The latest charge sheet names Kavitha, the daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, three employees of Chariot Productions Media Pvt Ltd (which handled the AAP’s Goa campaign) — Damodar Sharma, Prince Kumar, and Chanpreet Singh — and Arvind Singh, a former employee of India Ahead News Channel.
Kavitha was taken into custody by the ED on March 15 from her Hyderabad home in Banjara Hills. As part of the now-canceled Delhi excise strategy for 2021–2022, the central agency has claimed that Kavitha was a significant member of the “South Group,” which allegedly gave the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) bribes totaling ₹100 crore in exchange for a major portion of liquor licenses in the nation’s capital.
The E Kavitha was considered “one of the kingpins, a key conspirator and beneficiary of the Delhi excise policy scam” .
The excise case is about suspected corruption and money laundering in the creation and implementation of the Delhi government’s excise policy for 2021-22.
V K Saxena, Delhi Lieutenant Governor, suggested that the CBI investigate the suspected anomalies. The ED then filed a money laundering case on August 22, 2022, taking cognizance of the CBI FIR lodged on August 17, 2022.
At this point, the agency has made 18 arrests in relation to this investigation. Arvind Kejriwal, the chief minister of Delhi, was granted temporary release last Friday after being arrested on March 21.