A Delhi court has granted the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) permission to interrogate and record the statements of K Kavitha, a jailed leader of the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS), in connection with the money laundering case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. The court’s decision follows a plea filed by the probe agency seeking permission to question the BRS leader.
Kavitha, daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao, was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate on March 15 in connection with the excise policy case and is currently held in Tihar jail. She is the third high-profile politician to be arrested in the case after AAP leaders Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh. On March 21, Kejriwal became the first sitting chief minister to be arrested in the case.
According to the Enforcement Directorate’s primary allegation against Kavitha, she was part of the ‘South Group’ that allegedly paid kickbacks worth ₹100 crore to AAP leaders in exchange for nine retail zones under the now-abandoned policy. The probe agency has also named other individuals involved in the ‘South Group’ including Yuvajana Sramika Rythu Congress Party (YSCRCP) MP Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy, his son Raghav Magunta, Aurobindo Group promoter Sarath Reddy, and Delhi-based businessman Sameer Mahendru.
Following her arrest, Kavitha was initially remanded to the central agency’s custody until March 23, which was later extended. Last week, she was transferred to 14-day judicial custody.
On Thursday, Delhi’s Rouse Avenue court reserved its order on Kavitha’s interim bail plea until April 9. She had requested interim bail on the grounds that her son has an exam.
The Delhi excise policy, introduced in 2021-22, aimed to rejuvenate the city’s liquor business by replacing the sales-volume-based regime with a license fee system for traders, promising improved liquor stores without metal grilles, ultimately enhancing the consumer experience. However, the policy was scrapped after Delhi Lieutenant Governor VK Saxena called for a CBI probe into alleged irregularities.
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