A Delhi court on Friday issued notices to Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi in the alleged National Herald money laundering case.
The Rouse Avenue Courts directed the Gandhis and other accused to show cause why it should not take cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Last week, Special Judge (PC Act) Vishal Gogne declined to issue notice immediately. He asked the ED to place the necessary documents on record and correct the filing defects.
When the prosecution argued that the court could take cognisance without hearing the accused and requested issuance of notices, the judge replied, “I cannot pass such an order until satisfied.”
The court scheduled the next hearing for 2 May.
The ED recently filed a prosecution complaint against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Congress Overseas Chief Sam Pitroda, Suman Dubey, and others. The charge sheet pegs the alleged proceeds of crime at ₹988 crore.
The agency accused Congress leaders of misappropriating property owned by Associated Journals Limited (AJL), which originally published the National Herald. The ED claimed they converted public trust assets into personal gains.
The National Herald, founded in 1938 by Jawaharlal Nehru and others, played a vital role for the Congress during the freedom struggle.
AJL also published newspapers in Hindi and Urdu. The publications shut down in 2008 due to debts of over ₹90 crore.
In 2012, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy filed a case alleging fraud in AJL’s acquisition. He claimed Young Indian Ltd, where Sonia and Rahul hold majority stakes, took over AJL assets through a ‘malicious’ deal worth ₹50 lakh.
The ED said Young Indian acquired AJL’s vast properties at a nominal cost and undervalued their real worth. In November 2023, the agency attached AJL properties worth ₹661 crore and shares worth ₹90.2 crore as suspected proceeds of crime.
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