Amidst claim by the Enforcement Directorate that Bharat Rashtra Samithi (formerly Telangana Rashtra Samiti ) leader Kalvakuntla Kavitha  has been summoned for an inquiry and she asserting that she has been arrayed as an accused  and is being summoned for investigation, the Supreme Court  on Monday tagged her petition with two other similar pending matters relating to Nalini Chidambaram and Trinamool Congress leader Abhishek Banerjee.

 Kavitha, daughter of Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao, has been summoned by ED allegedly linking her with Delhi excise policy irregularities scam.

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 At the outset of the hearing, senior advocate Kapil Sibal appearing for Kalvakuntla Kavitha told a bench of Justice Ajay Rastogi and Justice Bela M Trivedi that the question is whether, in pursuance to the summoning by the ED, she (Kalvakuntla Kavitha) will be questioned at the ED’s office or at her residence in Hyderabad.

However, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju appearing for the ED said that Kavitha has not been summoned for investigation but for inquiry.  However, Sibal countered saying that after the registration of complaint, she has been arrayed as an accused and is now being summoned for investigation.

Sibal said that similar issue relating to Nalini Chidambaram and Abhishek Banerjee are already pending before the court and Kavitha matter should be tagged with them – a plea that was opposed by the ED referring to an earlier judgment by a three-judge bench which it (ED) asserted has dealt with aspect.

Observing that while deciding core issues, at times subsidiary issues get missed, the bench ordered tagging of Kavitha’s petition with that of Nalini Chidambaram’s and directed the listing of the matter after three weeks.

Kavitha in her petition has urged the apex court to quash March 7 and 11 ED summons stating that asking her to appear at agency’s office instead of her residence is contrary to the settled tenets of criminal jurisprudence and thus, wholly unsustainable in law being violative of the Proviso to Section 160 of Code of Criminal Procedure (CrPC).

She has also sought that the seizure made by the ED be declared as null and void.

Bharat Rashtra Samiti (BRS) leader has also sought that all proceedings to be carried out by ED, including those in relation to the recording of statements to be audio/videographed in the presence of her lawyer at a visible distance inter-alia by way of installation of appropriate CCTV cameras.

Alleging political conspiracy by certain members of ruling BJP at the Centre, Kavitha in her petition has alleged that despite her not being named in the FIR, certain members of the incumbent ruling political party at Centre, made scandalous statements linking her to the Delhi Excise Policy and the said FIR.

“The political conspiracy against the Petitioner (Kavitha) unfortunately did not end with judicial intervention by way of the Suit. The Enforcement Directorate filed a remand application qua one of the accused on 30.11.2022 before the concerned Court. This remand application contained the personal contact details of the Petitioner. There was no rhyme or reason to include the personal contact details of the Petitioner in a remand application which did not even concern the Petitioner. The act is all the more egregious considering the Petitioner is a lady,” BRS leader said.

Kavitha has said that the subsequent events are “extremely shameful” and in the “belief of the Petitioner (Kavitha), were orchestrated by the Enforcement Directorate at the behest of the members of the incumbent ruling party at the Centre, as part of a larger conspiracy against the Petitioner.”