Hyderabad Court Gives Notice to BJP Leaders in TRS MLC Kavitha’s Defamation Case

BJP leaders who are served notices had earlier dragged Kavitha's name in the ongoing row over Delhi excise policy.

Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) MLC K Kavitha.

(Photo: Facebook/ K Kavitha)

A local Civil Court in Hyderabad on Wednesday, 24 August, issued notices to Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leaders Parvesh Verma and Manjinder Singh Sirsa in a defamation case filed by Telangana Rashtra Samithi (TRS) MLC K Kavitha.

Both the leaders had earlier dragged Kavitha's name in the ongoing row over the now-scrapped Delhi excise policy.

The court, issuing notices to the respondents, passed an injunction order restraining them from making and /or publishing any defamatory or scandalous statements against Kavitha till 13 September, said P Mohit Reddy, counsel for the TRS MLC.

The court posted the matter to 13 September for hearing.

Kavitha Demands Unconditional Apology

Chief Minister K Chandrashekar Rao's daughter sought the court to direct the defendants to issue an unconditional apology in public, through social media websites and other forms of print and electronic media.

She prayed the court to grant a perpetual injunction order restraining the defendants from making any defamatory and scandalous statements.

Earlier, responding to the allegations Kavitha said the BJP-led government at the Centre can do whatever investigation is required as the probe agencies are under its control and that she would fully cooperate.

"Today, I want to make it very clear that the allegations that are made against me by the BJP and their party members are completely baseless," she had told reporters.

The Delhi government had withdrawn its excise policy 2021-22 and decided to go back to the old excise regime to run liquor stores in the city through its four undertakings from 1 September.

However, the government formed a committee to prepare a new excise policy.

Wholesale and retail licence-holders have been given extension to continue business up to 31 August after which retail liquor stores would be run by Delhi government corporations.

The government has already invited applications for wholesale licences of Indian and foreign liquor sale. In this backdrop, the TRS and the BJP were engaged in a war of words following a protest by saffron party activists at the residence of ruling party MLC K Kavitha here over allegations on her involvement in the excise policy issue.

TRS Leaders Express Solidarity With Kavitha

Telangana Animal Husbandry Minister Talasani Srinivas Yadav, Minister for ST, Women and Child Welfare Satyavati Rathod and several other ruling TRS MLAs called on Kavitha on Tuesday, 23 August, at her residence in Hyderabad.

They condemned the "attack" on Monday by BJP workers on the residence of Kavitha, and expressed solidarity with her.

Rathod said cases can be registered and investigation conducted if something wrong happened but "physical attacks" are not justified. On Monday, Kavitha slammed the BJP for dragging her name and her family in the row over the policy and would file a defamation suit against two saffron party leaders, one of whom had claimed she was a "middleman" between the liquor mafia and the AAP government.