Delhi excise case: Court allows CBI to interrogate BRS leader K Kavitha in Tihar jail

PTI, Apr 5, 2024, 8:26 PM IST

Source: PTI / File

New Delhi: A court here on Friday allowed the CBI to interrogate BRS leader K Kavitha, arrested in the Delhi excise policy-related money laundering case, in Tihar jail, raising the likelihood of her arrest in the scheduled offence of corruption.

Kavitha was arrested by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case linked to the alleged excise policy scam on March 15. She is currently in judicial custody.

Special Judge for ED and CBI cases Kaveri Baweja permitted the agency to interrogate Kavitha.

The order was passed on the plea filed by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) seeking the court’s permission to interrogate Kavitha in judicial custody.

The CBI, in its application, sought the court’s permission to ”interrogate/quiz and record the statement” of Kavitha regarding WhatsApp chats recovered from co-accused Buchi Babu’s phone and documents related to a land deal after which Rs 100 crore was allegedly paid to the Aam Aadmi Party in kickbacks.

Since Kavitha is already in judicial custody, the court’s permission was required to question her in jail.

Kavitha’s advocate Nitesh Rana said the application was neither served to the accused nor the information about the hearing given to the defence counsel.

”The order is passed without the opportunity of hearing given to the accused,” Rana said.

Kavitha had urged the court on Thursday for enlarging her on interim bail on account of her 16-year-old son’s exams for which he needed his mother’s ”moral and emotional support”. The judge has the reserved order on her plea.

Kavitha, daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, has been accused of being a key member of the ”South Group”, which allegedly paid the ruling AAP in Delhi kickbacks of Rs 100 crore in return for a big share of liquor licences in the national capital. She was sent to 14-day judicial custody last Tuesday.

The ED had arrested Kavitha, 46, from her Banjara Hills residence in Hyderabad on March 15.