National Herald case: ED begins possession of assets linked to Sonia, Rahul Gandhi

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has initiated proceedings to take possession of properties linked to Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case.

On April 11, the central probe agency issued notices to property registrars in Delhi, Mumbai, and Lucknow, where the assets of Associated Journals Limited (AJL), -- acquired by Young Indian Limited (YIL), a company beneficially owned by Sonia and Rahul Gandhi -- are located.

The case pertains to allegations of financial irregularities and misappropriation of funds involving the acquisition of AJL, which once published the National Herald newspaper, by YIL. BJP leader Subramanian Swamy,



who filed the initial complaint, alleges that Young Indian took over AJL’s assets in a "malicious manner" to gain control of properties worth over Rs 2,000 crore.

According to the ED, the attachment follows investigations that revealed the alleged laundering of proceeds of crime amounting to Rs 988 crore, linked to AJL's assets. The proceedings were initiated after an Adjudicating Authority recently confirmed the earlier provisional attachment of the properties.

In November 2023, the ED had provisionally attached immovable properties in Delhi, Mumbai, and Lucknow -- valued at Rs 661 crore -- along with AJL shares worth Rs 90.2 crore. This attachment was confirmed on April 10.