SC extends protection to BRS leader K Kavitha from coercive action by ED
New Delhi, Feb 28: The Supreme Court on Wednesday extended till March 13 the protection it had granted to BRS leader K Kavitha from any coercive action in a money laundering case lodged by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in connection with the alleged Delhi excise policy scam.
A bench comprising justices Bela M Trivedi and Pankaj Mithal extended the operation of its earlier order and said the matter will now be taken up for further hearing on March 13.
The ED had issued summons to the Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader on February 21 seeking her presence on February 26. However, Kavitha did not appear before the central probe agency.
The ED has alleged that Kavitha was a part of liquor cartel 'The South Group' which paid kickback of Rs 100 crore to Delhi's ruling Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) in return for favours under the now-scrapped excise policy for 2021-22.
The top court had on February 5 also extended the protection to Kavitha, the daughter of former Telangana Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao.
The bench had deferred the matter after senior advocate Kapil Sibal, appearing for Kavitha, said it may be listed for final hearing.
Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, appearing for the ED, had told the court that Kavitha has been avoiding summons and not appearing before the agency.
On September 15, 2023, the ED had told the apex court that the summons issued to Kavitha for her appearance before the agency would be extended by 10 days.
The ED had issued the summons dated September 4, 2023 to Kavitha, seeking her appearance at the agency's Delhi office on September 15.
She approached the apex court with an application seeking directions to restrain the ED from calling her by way of a notice or summons under section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) during the pendency of her petition.
In her plea, she sought protection from coercive action by the anti-money laundering agency on the ground that there are relaxations for women in various criminal laws, including the PMLA.
Section 50 of the PMLA deals with the powers of authorities regarding summons, production of documents, submitting evidence, etc.
The application also sought a stay on the operation of the September 4 summons or any other summons and "all coercive measures relating thereto".
In a significant verdict on July 27, 2022, the top court upheld the ED's powers relating to arrest, attachment of property involved in money laundering, search and seizure under the PMLA that were challenged by multiple petitioners, including Congress leader Karti Chidambaram.
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Voting underway for local body elections in Gujarat
Ahmedabad (PTI): Voting got underway on Sunday morning for elections to several local bodies in Gujarat, including 15 municipal corporations and 84 municipalities.
Polling began at 7 am and will continue till 6 pm, as per the schedule announced by the State Election Commission.
The elections are being held for 15 municipal corporations, including Ahmedabad, Surat, Vadodara and Rajkot, 84 municipalities, 34 district panchayats and 260 taluka panchayats, making it one of the largest electoral exercises in the state.
A total of 9,992 candidates are in the fray, with more than 4.18 crore voters eligible to exercise their franchise.
A three-tier security is in place, aided by CCTV surveillance and deployment of special squads in sensitive areas, police officials said.
The polls are being conducted under revised norms for Other Backward Classes (OBC) reservations, and required extensive delimitation and restructuring of wards in several districts.
The ruling BJP, Opposition Congress and the Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) have emerged as the key players, while All India Majlis-e-Ittehadul Muslimeen (AIMIM) is also contesting in several places.
Among notable candidates are former Gujarat-cadre IPS officer M L Ninama, ex-radio jockey Abha Desai, and former AAP MLA Bhupendra Bhayani.
Ninama is contesting from the Odh seat in Shamlaji taluka for the Arvalli district panchayat elections, while the BJP has nominated Bhayani from the Bhesan seat of the Junagadh district panchayat.
Desai, popularly known as RJ Abha, is contesting as a Congress candidate from ward number 10 of the Rajkot Municipal Corporation.
Elections are also being held for the first time in nine newly-created municipal corporations, including Navsari, Gandhidham, Morbi, Vapi, Anand, Nadiad, Mehsana, Porbandar and Surendranagar.
Counting of votes will take place on April 28.
Chief Minister Bhupendra Patel campaigned extensively for the BJP.
The AAP had taken the lead over other parties in launching the campaign, with its national convenor, Arvind Kejriwal, and Punjab Chief Minister Bhagwant Mann addressing several rallies across Gujarat.
In a first for AAP, the Kejriwal-led party is contesting around 5,000 seats in local polls.
Other contestants include the Nationalist Congress Party (NCP) and Independents.
AIMIM chief Asaduddin Owaisi campaigned in the final phase, addressing public meetings in Ahmedabad and Bhuj.
In March 2021, the BJP scored a landslide win in the local polls in Gujarat, winning 6,236 out of 8,470 seats across various municipalities and establishing a wide gap with rival Congress.
The BJP had then dominated all six municipal corporations, besides 81 municipalities, 32 district panchayats, and 231 taluka panchayats.
