National Herald money laundering case: Court seeks further clarifications from ED, calls IO with case file
(source : ANI) ( Photo Credit : ani)
National Herald Case: Court Puts ED Probe on Hold, Seeks More Details from Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi Money Laundering Probe
A Delhi court has taken a key step in the ongoing National Herald money laundering case involving top Congress leaders like Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. On Tuesday, the Rouse Avenue court heard arguments and decided to review the case further. It asked the Enforcement Directorate (ED) investigation officer to bring the full case file on September 26. This comes as the court prepares to decide whether to accept the ED’s prosecution complaint against the leaders.
The case, which has grabbed headlines for months, centers on allegations of financial wrongdoing tied to the National Herald newspaper. The ED claims that Congress leaders used a company called Young Indian to grab control of Associated Journals Limited (AJL), the firm behind the newspaper. AJL owns prime properties worth around Rs 2,000 crore. According to the probe, Young Indian paid just Rs 50 lakh to recover a Rs 90.46 crore loan that Congress had given to AJL. The ED alleges this was a fraudulent takeover, amounting to money laundering.
Special Judge Vishal Gogne listened to brief arguments from lawyers, including senior counsel for Dotex Merchandise Private Limited—one of the accused entities. The court also noted written submissions from Suman Dubey’s counsel, another key figure in the case. Special public prosecutor N K Matta represented the ED in person.
This isn’t the first delay. Back on July 29, the court postponed its order on taking cognisance of the ED’s charge sheet, asking for clarifications on missing documents. The ED had filed its prosecution complaint against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda, Sunil Bhandari, Young Indian, and Dotex Merchandise. But two important papers weren’t included initially: a 2014 complaint by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy and the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) from June 2021.
On September 6, the ED finally submitted these documents. Senior counsel Pramod Kumar Dubey, representing Dotex, pointed out that his client’s name doesn’t appear in either the Swamy complaint or the ECIR. During an earlier hearing, Additional Solicitor General S V Raju joined via video and said the ED had no issue sharing these files. He promised to file them formally.
The court wants more details on these documents to ensure everything lines up with the main prosecution complaint. In July, Judge Gogne reserved the order after hearing both sides. ASG Raju strongly argued that Young Indian was neck-deep in money laundering and that the evidence was strong enough to summon all accused in the National Herald case.
The National Herald money laundering probe has been a hot topic, with the ED accusing the Congress leadership of using shell companies to siphon assets. All eyes are now on the September 26 hearing, where the court might finally rule on the ED’s complaint. This could mean summons for Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and others if it goes ahead.
Stay tuned for updates on this high-profile ED case against Congress leaders.
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