New Delhi: The Supreme Court Tuesday granted bail to Bharat Rashtra Samithi (BRS) leader K Kavitha, an accused in the alleged irregularities linked to the Delhi government‘s now-scrapped excise policy.
“Investigation is complete and chargesheet has been filed. Custody of Kavitha is not necessary,” a division bench headed by Justice BR Gavai said. “The likelihood of trial being concluded in the near future is impossible. As said in various pronouncements of this court, undertrial custody should not turn into a punishment,” it ruled.
The bench took exception to the Delhi High Court’s observation that an educated, sophisticated woman is not entitled to bail under the beneficiary provision for women under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act. The high court had made the observation while turning down the bail plea of Kavitha, an ex-MP and daughter of former Telangana chief minister K Chandrashekhar Rao. The high court in July held that she was not a vulnerable person.
The SC bench ruled that Kavitha is entitled to beneficial treatment available to women under Section 45 of the PMLA. It held that courts should refrain from differentiating between an MP and a common person.
The top court said courts ought to be more sensitive towards women accused under PMLA. “We find that the learned single judge (of the high court) has totally misdirected herself in applying the proviso,” the bench added.
Kavitha has been behind bars for five months. Earlier, two senior AAP leaders, Sanjay Singh and former Delhi deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia, have been released on bail in the same matter.
Delhi chief minister Arvind Kejriwal has already been granted bail by the top court in the money laundering case registered against him by the Enforcement Directorate. His plea seeking bail in the CBI-registered case is pending before the top court.
