K Kavitha produced in court in Delhi excise policy scam; claims case against her is “political laundering”

Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha, currently in Enforcement Directorate (ED) custody regarding a suspected liquor case, stated on Tuesday that the accusations against her do not pertain to money laundering but rather to what she terms as “political laundering.”

Addressing the Rouse Avenue Court as her ED custody period in the Delhi excise policy money laundering case ended, Kavitha argued, “This is not a money laundering case but a political laundering case. It is a fabricated and false case.” She further asserted, “One accused has joined BJP, the second accused is getting a BJP ticket and the third accused has given 50 crore in electoral bonds. This is a political laundering case, we will come out clean.”

The Enforcement Directorate, seeking judicial custody for Kavitha, informed the Rouse Avenue Court that during her custody, they had taken her statement, conducted interrogations, and confronted her with various individuals and digital records.

Kavitha, a Member of Legislative Council (MLC) from Telangana and daughter of former Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, was arrested in Hyderabad on March 15 and subsequently remanded to ED custody a day later following a search operation at her Hyderabad residence.

Previously, the Supreme Court declined to consider K Kavitha’s bail plea in the Delhi excise policy case, instructing her to seek an expeditious decision on the bail application from the trial court.

The Enforcement Directorate has previously alleged that Kavitha, an MLC from BRS, conspired with top leaders of the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP), including Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia, to gain advantages in the formulation and execution of the Delhi Excise policy, involving a payment of Rs 100 crore to AAP leaders for these favors.

The case originated from a report submitted by Delhi Chief Secretary Naresh Kumar to Lieutenant Governor Vinai Kumar Saxena in July 2022, highlighting alleged procedural lapses in the policy formulation, leading to financial losses estimated at over Rs 580 crore.

In its first prosecution complaint in November 2021, the ED asserted that the policy was crafted with deliberate loopholes, promoting cartel formations to benefit AAP leaders, who allegedly received kickbacks from the “South Group” to the tune of Rs 100 crore.

Kavitha’s arrest is reportedly linked to her association with this “South Group.”

Meanwhile, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was remanded to ED custody for seven days, until March 28, following his arrest by the probe agency in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy case.