NEW DELHI: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a formal chargesheet against senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case. Also named in the chargesheet are Congress figures Sam Pitroda and Suman Dubey. The Congress party responded by condemning the move, calling it a “state-sponsored crime.”
The chargesheet, filed earlier this April, is now under review by Special Judge Vishal Gogne. The court is expected to consider taking cognisance of the case on April 25, 2025. The judge directed the ED’s counsel and the investigating officer to produce relevant case diaries for examination at the next hearing, according to PTI.
Reacting strongly on social media platform X, Congress MP Jairam Ramesh wrote:
“Seizing the assets of the National Herald is a state-sponsored crime masquerading as the rule of law. Filing chargesheets against Smt. Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and others is pure vendetta politics by the PM and HM gone rogue.”
Seizing the assets of the National Herald is a state-sponsored crime masquerading as the rule of law.
Filing chargesheets against Smt. Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and some others is nothing but the politics of vendetta and intimidation by the PM and the HM gone completely…— Jairam Ramesh (@Jairam_Ramesh) April 15, 2025
He asserted that the Congress and its leaders would not be silenced, signing off with “Satyameva Jayate.”
This development follows the ED’s move to seize assets worth over ₹700 crore from Associated Journals Limited (AJL), the company behind National Herald and linked to the Gandhis. These assets include high-value properties in Delhi, Mumbai, and Lucknow, notably Herald House on Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg in Delhi.
AJL is owned by Young Indian Pvt. Ltd., in which both Sonia and Rahul Gandhi hold 38% stakes, making them majority shareholders. The ED’s actions fall under Section 8 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, and relevant rules regarding attachment and possession of properties.
In a related case, businessman Robert Vadra—husband of Congress leader Priyanka Gandhi—appeared at the ED office earlier today in connection with a separate money laundering investigation. The case involves a 2008 land deal in Shikohpur, Haryana, where Vadra’s company, Skylight Hospitality, purchased land later sold to DLF after approval for commercial development.
Speaking to the media, Vadra described the case as politically driven and insisted on his innocence:
“I’ve been summoned over 15 times, interrogated for hours, and submitted over 23,000 documents. I’m always cooperative. This is political targeting—every time I speak up, old cases are used to silence me and others like Rahul. There’s nothing to hide.”