Today, the Delhi High Court has sought responses from Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and others after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) challenged a trial court order that refused to take cognisance of its money laundering chargesheet in the National Herald matter, reopening scrutiny over a key procedural hurdle under the PMLA.
The case stems from the ED’s prosecution alleging conspiracy and money laundering in the takeover of assets of Associated Journals Limited (AJL), publisher of the National Herald, by Young Indian, a private company in which the Gandhis allegedly held a majority stake. The ED claims AJL properties worth around Rs. 2,000 crore were acquired through a transaction involving a Rs. 90 crore loan. However, a trial court had declined to proceed, holding that the ED’s complaint was rooted in a private complaint and not an FIR for a scheduled offence under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), a finding the agency has now assailed before the Court.
Justice Ravinder Dudeja issued notice on the ED’s main petition as well as its plea seeking a stay on the December 16 trial court order, which had ruled that taking cognisance was “impermissible in law” in the absence of an FIR for the scheduled offence. The High Court has listed the matter for further hearing on March 12, 2026, keeping the trial court’s reasoning under judicial examination while calling for responses from the accused.
Source PTI
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