Delhi excise policy case: BRS leader Kavitha dubs ED notice as 'politically motivated'
She was questioned several times in March at the ED headquarters and had to submit her mobile phones to the federal agency for probe
MLC K Kavitha of the ruling BRS on Thursday (September 14) said the ED notice issued to her in the Delhi excise policy case is politically motivated, and that the party’s legal team would decide the future course of action on it.
The ED has summoned the daughter of Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrasekhar Rao to its Delhi office on Friday for questioning in the case over her alleged involvement in certain irregularities.
Kavitha was questioned several times in March at the ED headquarters and had to submit her mobile phones to the federal agency for the investigation.
‘Modi notice’
Describing the ED notice as “Modi notice”, the BRS leader said there is no need to react much to it as it was sent with “political vindictiveness”. Responding to questions about the notice, Kavitha, in a press conference in Nizamabad, said using central agencies has been the modus operandi of BJP in any poll-bound state and since Telangana is going to polls, the same technique is being used here.
“I received a notice (from ED). We have given it to the party’s legal cell. We’ll go by their advice. We strongly believe that it is politically motivated because of the charged up environment in Telangana -- upcoming elections,” she told reporters. She compared the ED investigation to a “never ending TV serial”.
“But, unfortunate it is, in the past one year, the investigation is happening. I don’t know how long it will happen. I don’t think even 2G (scam) went on for so long. It is unfortunate, but it is political and highly politically motivated,” Kavitha said. She expressed confidence that the “people of Telangana will not take it seriously”.
Nobody’s B-team
Stating that the BRS is not the B-team of anybody but the “A-team of people of this country and Telangana”, she said that people would see through this kind of “operation by the BJP” and teach the party a lesson, she said.
It is alleged that the Delhi government's excise policy for 2021-22 to grant licences to liquor traders allowed cartelisation and favoured certain dealers who had paid bribes for it, a charge strongly refuted by the ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in the national capital.
The policy was subsequently scrapped and the Delhi lieutenant governor had recommended a CBI probe, following which the ED registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
During its probe, the ED had recorded the statement of Butchibabu, an accountant allegedly linked to Kavitha, in which he had said “there was political understanding between K Kavitha and the chief minister (Arvind Kejriwal) and deputy chief minister (Manish Sisodia).” Kavitha has asserted that she has done no wrong and accused the BJP-led Centre of “exploiting” the ED as the saffron party could not gain a “backdoor entry” into Telangana.
(With agency inputs)
