The Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi has extended BRS leader K. Kavitha’s ED remand until March 26. As she was brought before the court on Saturday, she alleged that her arrest is illegal and stated that she intends to contest it in court.
Kavitha told reporters, “This is an illegal arrest. We are going to fight it out in court. It is a political case, a fabricated case, a false case. We are fighting it out. There is nothing new, they are asking the same things again and again.”
“Why so many arrests during election time. political arrest. ECI should intervene,” she added after the verdict was read out.
The BRS leader was produced before the Special Judge in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy case, as her ED custody ended on that day. The ED had applied for an extension of K. Kavitha’s remand for another five days.
The national probe agency, while seeking a further five days’ remand of the BRS leader, informed the court that searches are underway at her nephew Mekha Saran’s residence.
Earlier on Friday, the Supreme Court declined to entertain K Kavitha’s bail plea in the Delhi excise policy case and directed her to approach the trial court, stating that the bail application, if filed, should be decided expeditiously.
A bench of justices Sanjiv Khanna, MM Sundresh, and Bela M Trivedi remarked that it has to follow a uniform policy for all and cannot allow people to approach the top court directly for bail as they are political figures.
The court said that Kavitha could move the trial court or use any other remedy for bail. It directed that if a bail application is filed, it should be decided expeditiously.
K Kavitha, through her advocate P Mohith Rao, moved the Supreme Court on Monday challenging her arrest by the Enforcement Directorate in a money laundering case relating to Delhi excise policy irregularities.
Kavitha, who was arrested by an ED team on March 15, is in ED’s custodial interrogation for seven days. She was arrested after a search operation conducted at her residence in Hyderabad on the same day.
In her petition, the BRS leader has also challenged her remand and stated that the remand order does not adhere to Article 141, which states that the law declared by the Supreme Court shall be binding on all courts within the territory of India. K Kavitha in her plea also challenged section 19 (1) of the PMLA Act.
Earlier, the Enforcement Directorate claimed that Kavitha allegedly conspired with the top leaders of Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) including Arvind Kejriwal and Manish Sisodia to get favors in the Delhi Excise policy formulation and implementation, and she was involved in paying Rs 100 crore to the AAP leaders in exchange for these favors.
ED’s claims came three days after it arrested Kavitha, MLC of Telangana Legislative Council, in the alleged case of Delhi Liquor Policy Scam.
Meanwhile, Delhi CM Arvind Kejriwal was remanded to the custody of the Enforcement Directorate for seven days, till March 28, a day after he was arrested by the probe agency in connection with the Delhi Excise Policy case.
Two senior AAP leaders, Manish Sisodia and Sanjay Singh, are in judicial custody in the excise policy case. Sisodia, who was the then Delhi Deputy Chief Minister, was arrested by the CBI on February 26 following several rounds of questioning. On October 5, ED arrested Sanjay Singh, who is a Rajya Sabha member.