As BRS leader K Kavitha holds hunger strike over Women’s Bill, BJP rakes up Delhi excise policy case

Vibha Sharma

Chandigarh, March 10

A day beforeappearing for Enforcement Directorate questioning in the Delhi excise policy case, Bharat Rashtra Samithi MLC Kalvakuntla Kavitha today led a hunger strike at Delhi’s Jantar Mantar to press for the passage of the long-pending Women’s Reservation Bill in the Parliament.

The event saw the participation of the leaders of several opposition parties, including CPM, RJD, SP, NCP, AAP, Akali Dal, PDP,NC, TMC, JD(U), CPI, RLD, Shiv Sena (Uddhav Thackeray group) and former Congress leader Kapil Sibal.

CPM leader Sitaram Yechury and other leaders demanded that the Narendra Modi government bring the bill in the ongoing Budget Session, which resumes on Monday.

“It is important to bring this Bill to give equal opportunity to women in politics,” Yechury asserted.

The legislation proposes a Constitutional amendment to reserve one-third of the seats in the Lok Sabha andstate assemblies for women.

BJP leaders called the agitation led by the daughter of BRS supremo and Telengana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao a “diversionary tactic”.

It exposes her party’s “hypocrisy” on the issue, said BJP leaders in Delhi and Hyderabad.

According to BJP’s Telengana chief Bandi Sanjay, as a minister in the UPA government KCR “never once mentioned the bill”, rather in 2014 he gave the party ticket to his daughter and in 2019 to only two women.

“The agitation is a ploy to divert attention from Kavitha’s involvement in liquor scam,” he alleged.

ED case against Kavitha: BJP-BRS trade charges

ED’s allegation is that Kavitha was a part of the “South cartel” that benefited from kickbacks after Delhi’s now-scrapped liquor policy came into force.

Terming ED summons as “nothing but a diversionary tactic”, Kavitha accuses the BJP-led Centre of “misusing probe agencies for political goals” because Telangana elections are due later this year.”

The “real target” is her father, Kavitha also claims.

KCR is at the forefront of building a coalition to take on the BJP and PM Modi in the 2024 Lok Sabha elections.

“I have done nothing wrong. I have no connection with the (Delhi liquor policy) case or any allegations they are putting on me,” Kavitha says.

According to the BRS leader, she released a poster about the hunger strike in Delhi over the Women’s Reservation Bill on March 2 following which summons were issued to her for March 9.

“I requested for March 16. I don’t know what haste they’re in, so I agreed for March 11. Why was the ED in a rush to question me and choose a day before my protest?” she was quoted as saying.

“As a law-abiding citizen, I will fully cooperate with the investigation agencies,” Kavitha said.

While focus has shifted to Delhi, the BJP organised events to counter the BRS in Hyderabad.

What is the ED case?

According to reports, the ED has asked Kavitha to join the investigation in connection with the money laundering probe into alleged irregularities in the Delhi government’s now-scrapped liquor policy

The summons to Kavitha were issued a day after Hyderabad-based businessman Arun Ramchandra Pillai was arrested in the case.

Officials said Kavitha would be confronted with purported disclosures made by Pillai. A team of CBI officers had also recorded Kavitha’s statement at her Hyderabad residence last year.

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 allegedly paid bribes for it. AAP has, however, refuted the charges.

The ED claims members of the “south group/cartel” paid bribes to exploit loopholes in the excise policy that would secure their uninhibited access to various wholesale businesses and retail zones in violation of rules.

Kickbacks worth Rs 100 crore were “paid in advance to AAP leaders by the ‘south group’ as a part of agreement with AAP leaders,” it is also alleged.

Kavitha and some other leaders are members of the “South group” according to the ED, it is alleged.