As Robert Vadra faces ED heat, wife Priyanka says ‘I stand by him’

This is the first time Robert Vadra is appearing before any probe central agency in connection with allegations of dubious financial dealings and comes days after Priyanka Gandhi was formally inducted into the Congress party.

Robert Vadra, brother-in-law of Congress president Rahul Gandhi, reached the Enforcement Directorate office in Delhi on Thursday after the agency summoned him in a money laundering case. Robert Vadra was dropped off at the office by his wife Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.

Robert Vadra was dropped off at the ED office by his wife Priyanka Gandhi Vadra. (HT PHOTO/Burhaan Kinu)

This is the first time Robert Vadra is appearing before any probe central agency in connection with allegations of dubious financial dealings and comes days after Priyanka Gandhi was formally inducted into the Congress party.

After dropping Robert Vadra at the ED office, Priyanka left for the Congress headquarters at Akbar Road where she assumed charge as the general secretary incharge of eastern Uttar Pradesh. “I stand by my family,” she said, according to news agency Press Trust of India, as Congress workers shouted slogans hailing her. “Priyanka you fight on, we are with you!” they said, according to IANS.

Also Watch: Today Robert Vadra is before ED, Modi will be next: Sanjay Singh

The BJP has been attacking Priyanka and the Congress over the allegations against Robert Vadra. The BJP has alleged that Vadra benefited from a petroleum and a defence deal which took place in 2008-09 when the UPA was in power. “Robert Vadra used the money to buy posh properties worth several crore rupees in London,” BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra said on Wednesday. Patra said the 2019 Lok Sabha election will be a fight between the gang of corrupt versus transparency of Narendra Modi government.

Robert Vadra arrived at the ED’s office located in central Delhi’s Jamnagar House at 3.45 pm in a white Toyota Land Cruiser along with SPG personnel.He has been told to cooperate with the ED investigation by a Delhi court that he had approached for anticipatory bail.

The case relates to allegations of money laundering in the purchase of a London-based property — located at 12, Bryanston Square — worth 1.9 million pounds. Robert Vadra has denied the allegations on several occasions in the past, called termed them a political witch hunt and accused the BJP-led national coalition of attempting to distract attention from its failures.

The Congress said Robert Vadra’s questioning by the Enforcement Directorate was an attempt is to mislead, confuse and to create an ambience before election. “People see through this,” said Congress spokesperson Abhishek Manu Singhvi.

He said the charges against Vadra are “fickle, superficial, non-existent, non-substantive”. “The ED, Income Tax Department, the CBI, and 10 other agencies could not do a thing against him, for so many years. It shows that this is nothing but an ‘electoral jumla’,” Singhvi added.

The Enforcement Directorate had told the court that it has received information about various new properties in London which belongs to Vadra, including two houses of five and four million each, six other flats and more properties.

The ED had carried out raids in this case in December last year and questioned Robert Vadra’s aide Manoj Arora, an employee of a firm linked to Vadra, Skylight Hospitality LLP.

Vadra has also been directed by the Rajasthan High Court to appear before the ED on February 12 in connection with another money laundering case being probed by the agency.