What Did Rahul Gandhi's Lawyer Say About ED Allegations in the National Herald Case?

New Delhi, July 5 (NationPress) In the National Herald money laundering case, Leader of Opposition (LoP) in Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi informed a Special Delhi Court on Saturday that the efforts of the All India Congress Committee to revive the pre-Independence newspaper were misinterpreted as an attempt to liquidate its assets.

During the proceedings before Special Judge Vishal Gogne, Senior Advocate R.S. Cheema, representing the LoP, criticized the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for its 'squinted version' suggesting the AICC was seeking profit through the sale of the assets of Associated Journals Limited (AJL), the entity owning the newspaper.

Cheema asserted that the AICC had no plans to sell AJL's assets, but rather aimed to breathe life back into the media outlet that served during the freedom struggle.

The lawyer for LoP Rahul Gandhi also questioned why the ED had failed to provide the court with a Memorandum of Association (MoA) for AJL, which states that the policy of AJL aligns with that of the Congress party.

Emphasizing the company’s non-profit mission, Cheema stated that the newspaper was never designed to operate as a commercial enterprise.

The AICC simply wished to restore AJL to its former glory, he explained.

The ED alleged that the Gandhis held a 76 percent majority share in the private entity Young Indian, which allegedly misappropriated assets worth Rs 2,000 crore from the now-defunct newspaper by paying merely Rs 50 lakh.

On Friday, Abhishek Manu Singhvi, representing Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, described the ED's case against her as “extraordinarily strange” and “unprecedented.” He challenged the money laundering allegations, arguing that no concrete assets were involved.

The ED wrapped up its oral arguments on Thursday in the Rouse Avenue Court, discussing why the prosecution complaint against Congress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi, LoP Rahul Gandhi, and others in the alleged National Herald money laundering case should be recognized.

Following the submissions made by Additional Solicitor General (ASG) S.V. Raju, the court instructed the accused parties, including the Gandhis, Congress Overseas Chief Sam Pitroda, and Suman Dubey, to file their responses.

ASG Raju contended that Young Indian Ltd, in which Sonia and LoP Rahul Gandhi are majority stakeholders, was utilized to appropriate around Rs 2,000 crore in assets from the now-defunct newspaper by making a nominal payment of Rs 50 lakh.

Moreover, the ED claimed that the shareholding in Young Indian is merely nominal, alleging that all other accused are merely puppets for the Gandhi family.

The dispute over its assets gained attention in 2012 when BJP leader Subramanian Swamy filed a complaint in a trial court, accusing Congress leaders of cheating and breach of trust in the acquisition process of AJL.

Throughout the investigation, the ED discovered that Young Indian, effectively owned by the Gandhis, took control of AJL's properties while undervaluing their true market value.

In November 2023, the ED seized immovable properties valued at Rs 661 crore along with AJL shares worth Rs 90.2 crore, labeling them as suspected proceeds of crime.