BRS MLC K Kavitha, who approached the Supreme Court against High Court refusal of bail to her get setback from the Apex court as it refused to give interim bail to her. A Bench of justices BR Gavai and KV Viswanathan agreed to hear Kavitha’s pleas challenging the Delhi High Court’s July 1 verdict denying her bail in these cases.
The Bench then issued notices to the CBI and the ED seeking their responses on Kavitha’s pleas and posted the matter for hearing on August 20.
After Delhi’s former deputy chief minister Manish Sisodia was released on bail by the Apex court in this case last week, Kavitha expected she would also get bail on Monday against her Special Leave Petition. But, now she has to wait for another week for the court’s response.
Senior advocate Mukul Rohatgi, appearing for Kavitha, told the Bench that she has been in custody for around five months and the charge sheet and prosecution complaint have been filed by the CBI and ED respectively.
A prosecution complaint is the ED’s equivalent of a charge sheet. Rohatgi said there were around 500 witnesses in both these cases. Contending that she was entitled to bail, Rohatgi referred to the apex court’s verdict and order passed on the pleas filed by Delhi Chief Minister Aravind Kejriwal and also Manish Sisodia.
The top court had granted interim bail to Kejriwal in the money laundering case linked to the alleged scam. Sisodia was granted bail in both the corruption and money laundering cases linked to the alleged Delhi excise policy scam. Rohatgi said Kavitha’s case was covered by these orders of the top court.
“We will issue notice,” the Bench said. “May I pray for interim bail,” Rohatgi said. The Bench observed, “Not without hearing them (CBI and ED)”.