The Supreme Court on Tuesday (August 27) granted bail to BRS leader K Kavitha in the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. It said there should be no attempt on her part to influence witnesses or tamper with evidence in both cases, for which a bail bond of Rs 10 lakh each was asked to be furnished.
A bench of Justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan noted that Kavitha has been in custody for around five months and the probe against her by the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate was complete in these cases.
“The appellant is behind bars for close to five months; the likelihood of trial being completed in the near future is impossible,” the SC bench observed, recording the submissions made by the central probe agencies.
The top court set aside a July 1 Delhi High Court order denying her bail. The high court had dismissed Kavitha’s bail pleas in both cases, saying she was prima facie one of the main conspirators in the criminal conspiracy related to the formulation and implementation of the now-scrapped Delhi Excise Policy 2021-22.
The ED arrested Kavitha (46) from her Banjara Hills residence in Hyderabad on March 15. The CBI arrested her on April 11 from Tihar jail. She has denied all allegations.
(With PTI inputs)
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