Temporary relief for Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi in National Herald case
NEW DELHI: A temporary relief for Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others in the National Herald case. Delhi's Rose Avenue court has refused to take cognizance of the Enforcement Directorate's charge sheet in the money laundering case.
The court dismissed the Enforcement Directorate's charge sheet, pointing that the case was filed based on a complaint by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy and not on the basis of an FIR. The court pointed that the Delhi Police's Economic Offences Wing has already registered an FIR in this case, and therefore it is unwise to pass judgment on the ED's argument. Meantime, Congress leaders responded that the ED's actions are politically motivated and legally untenable. Subramanian Swamy had filed a complaint with the ED alleging that the assets worth crores of crores of rupees of Associated Journals, the owners of the now defunct National Herald newspaper, were misappropriated by a company called Young Indian, whose directors are Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. Associated Journals Limited, the operating company of the National Herald newspaper, had taken an interest-free loan of Rs 90 crore from the Indian National Congress. When this amount was not repaid, it is alleged that a company called Young Indian, formed in 2010 with a capital of Rs 5 lakh, took over the assets of Associated Journals Company worth Rs 5,000 crore.