Kavitha cries foul over ED notices, calls it political vendetta, harassment

DELHI: After BRS minister K T Rama Rao, MLC Kavitha Kalvakuntala slammed the Modi Government and Enforcement Directorate (ED) after the agency summoned her for questioning in connection with Delhi liquor scam on Thursday.

“Why is the ED in such a hurry to start the investigation?” questioned Kalvakuntala Kavitha while speaking to the media in Delhi, in response to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) summons issued to her in connection with the Delhi excise policy case.

MLC Kavitha, who also spoke on the Women's Reservation Bill, said, "The Women Reservation Bill was heavily debated in our country. However, it was never passed in Lok Sabha after being introduced in the Rajya Sabha in 1996. “It's been 27 years since then, yet we've only been talking about it since then. The Women's Reservation Bill has been amended several times in recent years. I applaud Madam Sonia Gandhi for bringing it back to Rajya Sabha, and it was only through her efforts that it was passed in Rajya Sabha. We should think about increasing women's political representation. That is why we decided to hold a rally demanding the same on March 10 in Delhi. But ED wanted to question me on the same day."

MLC Kavitha, who alleged 'political victimisation' after the ED summoned her in the Delhi excise policy case, said, "We will definitely co-operate with the agency. Yet, this is an attempt to target political rivals before the elections. I have requested that the investigation be conducted on March 12 or 13, as we have a planned protest in Delhi on March 10 demanding the Women Reservation Bill".

She said, "I also asked ED officials to question me at my home, together with other accused, if they wanted to do so. But all they requested was for me to travel to Delhi. I'm a political leader with all the resources to travel to Delhi for interrogation, but what about any ordinary woman who has to travel this far for whatever reason? We have all been witness to how video conferences were used during the COVID19 lockdown. Why can't they use the same approach for interrogation? India needs a major change in policy in this regard, particularly for women, so that we don't have to travel far for interrogations and can do it from anywhere."

She said, "From August 2022, the Indian government has sent several ED officials to Telangana, conducting searches and harassing our MPs and Ministers. The ED has raided over 200 people, while the NIA has raided and harassed over 500 people. Thus the Modi government's strategy is for the ED, NIA, and other agencies to arrive in states before the polls, even before Modi arrives. I'd like to know why the Modi government is harassing all of us on this issue. If he wants votes, he can get them by working for people's development rather than through backdoor politics ".

Permission denied for Kavitha

The Enforcement Directorate summoned Kavitha to appear for questioning on March 10. However, Kavitha has scheduled a dharna demanding reservations for women in legislative bodies at Jantar Mantar in Delhi on March 10.

The Delhi police told Kavitha that she did not have permission to stage a dharna at Jantar Mantar as the BJP was organising a protest at the same place.