National Herald Case: ED Submits Key Docs, Court Orders Copies To Accused

Enforcement Directorate

The Enforcement Directorate on Saturday formally filed important documents in the ongoing National Herald money laundering case involving Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and several others.

The filings included the original complaint lodged by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in 2014 and the Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) registered in 2021.

Court Orders ED To Share Documents With Accused Parties

Special Judge Vishal Gogne directed the ED to provide copies of these documents to all individuals named as accused in the case. The court has scheduled the next hearing for September 16, where it will hear arguments from the defense before deciding whether to take cognisance of the charges.

Background

The case centers on allegations that Young Indian, a company linked to Congress, fraudulently acquired rights over Associated Journals Limited (AJL), which reportedly holds assets worth around Rs. 2,000 crores. The ED alleges that Young Indian secured rights to recover a Rs. 90 crore loan to AJL by paying just Rs. 50 lakh to the Congress party.

Earlier, on July 29, the court postponed issuing a cognisance order after seeking clarifications regarding key documents that were part of the case file but had not yet been formally submitted by the ED.

Court Proceedings & Submissions

During a confidential hearing last Thursday, Additional Solicitor General S V Raju, appearing via video conference, stated that the ED was ready to file these documents formally and supply copies to the accused. Special Public Prosecutor N K Matta appeared in person before the court.

The judge had requested explanations about two specific documents—the 2014 complaint by Swamy and the 2021 ECIR—which were in the ED’s possession but had not been filed along with the prosecution complaint until now.

The ED’s charge sheet names Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda, Sunil Bhandari, Young Indian, and Dotex Merchandise among the accused. The agency alleges these parties conspired in money laundering activities connected to the takeover of AJL.

Prosecution’s Standpoint

In arguments presented on July 12, ASG S V Raju asserted that Young Indian has been involved in money laundering and stressed there is enough evidence to proceed against all accused individuals in the case.

The court has reserved its order and will consider all submissions when the matter is next heard in mid-September.