BRS leader K Kavitha remanded to CBI custody till April 15 in liquor policy case
BRS leader K Kavitha was arrested by the CBI in Tihar jail, where she was lodged after her arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case.
A Delhi court on Friday remanded BRS leader K Kavitha to the CBI custody till April 15 in a corruption case linked to Delhi excise policy 2021-22. Special Judge Kaveri Baweja passed the order after hearing arguments of the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) as well as Kavitha's counsel.
Kavitha, who had been previously arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a parallel money laundering case, was held by CBI in Tihar jail, where she had been held in judicial custody.
The CBI arrested her under Section 120-B (criminal conspiracy) read with Section 477-A (falsification of accounts) of the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and Section 7 (offence relating to public servant being bribed) of the Prevention of Corruption Act, the officials said.
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Seeking five-day custody, the probe agency told the court that Kavitha was not cooperating in the investigation and was evasive in her replies.
Senior advocate Vikram Chaudhary and advocates Nitesh Rana and Deepak Nagar opposed the application stating that the evidence that is being claimed by the agency is old.
“These evidence and statement on which CBI is relying are much older and have no proximity link or connection with the necessity to arrest”, he argued.
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The CBI had questioned the BRS leader inside the prison on WhatsApp chats recovered from co-accused Buchi Babu's phone and documents related to a land deal after which ₹100 crore was allegedly paid to Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in kickbacks to influence the now-scrapped excise policy in favour of a liquor lobby.
The investigation revealed a complex web of transactions, including a purported exchange of funds between a liquor businessman and AAP officials, with Kavitha allegedly facilitating the arrangement.
The probe implicated several other individuals, including members of what investigators have termed the "South Group," which allegedly played a significant role in orchestrating the illicit activities related to the excise policy.
(With Bureau inputs)