Delhi excise case: TRS leader Kavitha files defamation case against 2 BJP leaders
TRS leader Kalvakuntla Kavitha also sought an injunction order against the two BJP leaders to bar them from levelling any more baseless allegations against her in context of the Dehi excise policy
HYDERABAD: Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) lawmaker and chief minister K Chandrasekhar Rao’s daughter Kalvakuntla Kavitha on Monday filed a defamation case in a Hyderabad court against Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders Parvesh Varma and Manjinder Singh Sirsa for linking her with the alleged multi-crore liquor policy case involving Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia.
The TRS leader told reporters that she has also sought an injunction order against the two BJP leaders to bar them from levelling any more baseless allegations against her.
Lok Sabha MP Parvesh Varma and former legislator Sirsa on Sunday alleged that Kavitha played a key role in the Delhi excise case being investigated by the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), brokered the alleged deal between Manish Sisodia and liquor companies and participated in meetings on the now-recalled Delhi excise policy.
Responding to Kavitha’s statement, senior BJP leader P Muralidhar Rao said instead of attacking the BJP, the chief minister’s family should be ready to face the investigation by CBI and Enforcement Directorate. “Let the agencies probe into the involvement of Kavitha in the Delhi liquor scam and bring out the truth,” he said.
Kavitha said the BJP was in power at the Centre and can order any investigation by central agencies. “We shall extend all cooperation to the investigation agencies,” she said, insisting that the allegations of her involvement and the Telangana Rashtra Samithi were totally baseless.
Kavitha, who described mudslinging at political opponents an unhealthy practice, said the BJP was trying to hurt her family’s reputation because of the TRS leadership’s sharp criticism of the BJP and its government at the Centre.
“It is pretty clear that the BJP is rattled by the criticism being made by my father against the BJP and anti-people policies of the Narendra Modi government at the Centre. That is why, the BJP is trying to damage the reputation of our family,” she said.
Kavitha said the efforts of the BJP to malign KCR and his family members were just allegations and that this wasn’t the first time that something like this had been attempted. “Even during the movement for a separate Telangana state, there were several allegations against the TRS but they failed to dampen its spirits,” she said.
“There was no reply to any of the questions posed by the TRS to the Centre, including the release of 11 accused in the infamous Bilkis Bano gang rape case. In order to divert the attention of the people from such crucial issues, the BJP has made such baseless allegations,” Kavitha said.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has already dismissed allegations of financial irregularities against Sisodia who steered the 2021-22 excise policy introduced in November 2021. The policy overhauled the Capital’s liquor market and fetched the state government ₹8,919.59 crore, close to 27% more than the base price set for licence bids.
On Sunday, Sirsa alleged that it was TRS leader Kavitha who facilitated meetings between liquor barons from southern India and the minister. He further alleged that Kavitha arranged a ₹4.5 crore bribe to Sisodia of which ₹3.5 crore was paid in cash and the rest through a credit note to get a distillery in Punjab unsealed.
“Kavitha has a role in all this give and take. She was holding meetings. She met with the Chaddha family, took money and had their factory unsealed,” he alleged.
Parvesh Verma alleged that KCR’s family members attended meetings on the Delhi government’s excise policy at a five-star hotel in the national capital.
