After ED, now CBI sleuths arrest Kavitha

NEW DELHI: The CBI on Thursday arrested Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha in connection with a corruption case linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam, officials said.

Kavitha, 46, the daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekar Rao, was held in Tihar jail where she was lodged after her arrest by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in a money laundering case linked to the excise ‘scam’ on March 15, they said.

The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) had questioned Kavitha inside the prison on Saturday after obtaining permission from a special court. The BRS leader was questioned on 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 Delhi’s ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in kickbacks to swing the now-scrapped excise policy in favour of a liquor lobby.

The CBI arrested Kavitha in jail number 6 of Tihar prison around noon on Thursday 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.

While Kavitha will remain in Tihar jail on Thursday, the agency is likely to produce her before a court on Friday to seek her remand.

If the CBI gets her remand, Kavitha will be moved to a lockup at the agency headquarters where she will be questioned by officers of the Anti-Corruption Branch, which is probing the case, the officials said.

It has been alleged that one of the accused, Vijay Nair, received kickbacks to the tune of at least Rs 100 crore from a group called South Group (controlled by Sarath Reddy, Kavitha, Magunta Srinivasulu Reddy) on behalf of AAP leaders.