The Delhi High Court has scheduled July 31 for the hearing of Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha’s plea challenging her arrest by the CBI in the Delhi excise policy case and the trial court’s decision to remand her to CBI custody.
This follows the reassignment of the case due to a change in the Delhi HC roster by Justice Swarna Kanta Sharma.
K Kavitha’s plea asserts that her arrest and detention in the CBI case are unlawful and violate her fundamental rights under Articles 21 and 22 of the Constitution. She argues that there is no evidence of a cash transaction or money trail, making her arrest order baseless.
The CBI’s chargesheet alleges Kavitha’s involvement in manipulating the Delhi excise policy and transferring illicit money to Goa through hawala channels. Co-accused Abhishek Boinpally and PA Ashok Kaushik were also implicated in these transfers.
During the investigation, it was revealed that Arvind Kumar Singh, a production controller at India Ahead News, acted as a conduit, facilitating the transfer of Rs 7.10 crores from Delhi to Goa through hawala channels.
On July 22, the Rouse Avenue Court acknowledged the supplementary chargesheet filed by the CBI against Kavitha. Special Judge Kaveri Baweja directed that she be produced before the court via video conferencing on July 26 and ordered that a copy of the chargesheet be provided to her counsel.
This is the third supplementary chargesheet filed by the CBI in this case. Kavitha, who was first arrested by the Directorate of Enforcement (ED) on March 15 and later by the CBI on April 11, remains in judicial custody.
The Delhi High Court had previously dismissed her bail petitions in both the CBI and ED cases on July 1. The probe agencies allege irregularities in modifying the excise policy, granting undue favors to license holders, waiving fees, and extending licenses without proper authorization, resulting in significant financial losses to the exchequer.
