Robert Vadra, businessman and husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi, on Thursday, 14 May failed to secure immediate relief from the Delhi High Court in a money laundering case stemming from a 2008 land deal in Gurugram's Shikohpur village. The court adjourned the matter to 18 May after hearing arguments from both sides.

What the Hearing Covered

A single-judge Bench of Justice Manoj Jain was hearing Vadra's plea challenging a Rouse Avenue Court order that had taken cognisance of an Enforcement Directorate (ED) complaint under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) and issued summons to him and eight others.

Senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, appearing for Vadra, argued that some of the predicate offences invoked under the Indian Penal Code (IPC) and the Prevention of Corruption Act were added to the PMLA schedule only after the alleged offences were committed between 2008 and 2012. He contended that the question of jurisdiction and retrospective application of provisions had been raised before the trial court but was not addressed.

ED Pushes Back Hard

Opposing the plea, ED counsel Zoheb Hossain submitted that Vadra had made 'false and incorrect statements' in his petition. 'This needs to go with costs. I have done an exercise of pulling out all the bare acts. Complete false submissions. Section 467 IPC was there in its original inception in the PMLA schedule. Ex facie, false and incorrect statements are made,' Hossain submitted.

The ED opposed the plea on maintainability grounds, and Justice Jain directed Singhvi to come prepared on the jurisdiction question at the next hearing. 'Mr Singhvi, please come prepared on this aspect on Monday because that is your central plank. We will hear you on Monday,' the judge said.

The ED's Core Allegations

The ED has alleged that Vadra's company, Skylight Hospitality Private Limited, acquired around 3.5 acres of land in Shikohpur village in February 2008 for ₹7.50 crore from Omkareshwar Properties Private Limited despite having limited capital. According to the agency, no actual payment was made, and the sale deed contained false declarations — including reference to a cheque that was allegedly never issued or encashed.

The ED has further alleged that the land was undervalued in the sale deed, resulting in evasion of stamp duty, constituting an offence under Section 423 of the IPC. In its prosecution complaint, the agency has identified ₹58 crore as proceeds of crime and provisionally attached 43 immovable properties worth ₹38.69 crore allegedly linked to Vadra, his proprietary concern Artex, Skylight Hospitality, and associated entities. The ED has sought a maximum punishment of seven years' rigorous imprisonment under Section 4 of the PMLA, along with confiscation of the attached properties.

Background and Timeline

The case has a long political trail. In October 2012, senior IAS officer Ashok Khemka cancelled the Shikohpur land deal, citing procedural irregularities. An in-house government panel subsequently gave a clean chit to Vadra and DLF, but an FIR was registered after the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) government came to power in Haryana.

Earlier, on 15 April, the Rouse Avenue Court had issued summons to Vadra and eight others after taking cognisance of the ED's prosecution complaint, directing them to appear before it on 16 May. Vadra will have to comply with that summons regardless of the High Court proceedings.

With the Delhi High Court now scheduled to hear the jurisdiction argument on 18 May, the case enters a critical phase that could determine whether the trial court proceedings can continue as planned.