The CBI will produce Bharat Rashtra Samithi leader K Kavitha before Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court on Friday.
Earlier today, the CBI arrested Kavitha in connection with the alleged liquor policy scam under sections of criminal conspiracy and falsification of accounts of the IPC and certain sections of the Prevention of Corruption Act.
According to Kavitha’s legal team, the CBI took Kavitha under custody at 12.15 pm in Tihar Jail, where she was under judicial custody in the money laundering case.
Previously on Wednesday, the CBI apprised the concerned court in Delhi that the BRS leader had already been examined on April 6 in Tihar Jail in connection with the case.
The Special Judge, Kaveri Baweja, has been informed by the CBI counsel that “we are not filing any reply, we have already examined her on April 6.”
On April 5, 2024, the Delhi Court allowed CBI plea to examine K Kavitha during the judicial custody in Tihar Jail on any day of the coming week.
The CBI, through the application, sought court permission to interrogate/quiz and record the statement of BRS Leader K Kavitha regarding WhatsApp chats recovered from Buchi Babu’s phone and documents to a Land deal post which 100 crores were allegedly paid to Aam Aadmi Party in kickbacks.
The Rouse Avenue Court on Tuesday sent K Kavitha to judicial custody until April 23, 2024. She was arrested by the ED recently in connection with the Delhi excise policy-linked money laundering case.
On March 15, 2024, the ED arrested K Kavitha MLC, Telangana Legislative Council, in the case of the alleged liquor policy scam.
On the same day, the search was also been conducted at the residence of K Kavitha in Hyderabad.
ED through a statement stated that, during the search proceedings, the ED officials were obstructed by the relatives and associates of K Kavitha.
The ED investigation revealed that K. Kavitha, along with others, conspired with the top leaders of AAP, including Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia, to get favours in the Delhi Excise policy formulation and implementation.
The ED has alleged that in exchange for these favours, she was involved in paying Rs 100 crore to the leaders of AAP.
Through acts of corruption & conspiracy in the formulation and implementation of Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22, a continuous stream of illegal funds in the form of kickbacks, from the wholesalers was generated for the AAP, as per the ED’s allegation.
Furthermore ED stated that, K Kavitha and her associates were to recover the proceeds of crime paid in advance to AAP and to further generate profits/proceeds of crime from this entire conspiracy.
ED has filed 1 prosecution complaint and 5 supplementary complaints in the case so far.
Further, out of the proceeds of crime generated, assets worth Rs. 128.79 crore have been traced so far and have been attached through provisional attachment orders on January 24 & July 3 in 2023.
Both the attachment orders have been confirmed by the adjudicating authority in New Delhi.
The officials stated that the CBI inquiry was recommended based on the findings of the Delhi Chief Secretary’s report filed in July showing prima facie violations of the GNCTD Act 1991, Transaction of Business Rules (ToBR)-1993, Delhi Excise Act-2009, and Delhi Excise Rules-2010.
The ED & CBI alleged that irregularities were committed while modifying the excise policy, undue favours were extended to licence holders, the licence fee was waived or reduced and the L-1 licence was extended without the competent authority’s approval.
The probe agencies said, the beneficiary’s diverted “illegal” gains to the accused officials and made false entries in their books of account to evade detection.
As per the allegations, the Excise Department decided to refund the earnest money deposit of about Rs 30 crore to a successful tenderer against the set rules.
Even though there was no enabling provision, a waiver on tendered licence fees was allowed from December 28, 2021, to January 27, 2022, due to COVID-19, the probe agency said and there was an alleged loss of Rs 144.36 crore to the exchequer.
