ED issues notice to take possession of ₹661 crore assets in Congress-linked National Herald case
The action has been taken under Section 8 and Rule 5(1) of the PML Act, about the procedure of taking possession of the assets that are attached by the ED
The Enforcement Directorate (ED) said on Saturday that it has issued notices to take possession of immovable assets worth ₹661 crore that it had attached in a probe into the money laundering case against Congress-controlled Associated Journals Limited (AJL).
The case is better known as the National Herald case, in which former Congress president Sonia Gandhi and leader of the opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi are named as the accused
The federal probe agency said in a statement that it has affixed the notices at three places on Friday. These are the Herald House located in Delhi at ITO, at the premises in Bandra area of Mumbai, and the AJL building located at Bisheshwar Nath Road in Lucknow.
The notices seek vacation of the Delhi and Lucknow premises. For the Mumbai building, the company has an option of transferring of rent to the ED, news agency PTI reported.
The action has been taken under Section 8 and Rule 5(1) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) that talks about the procedure of taking possession of the assets that are attached by the ED and confirmed by the adjudicating authority (of PMLA). These immovable assets were attached by the ED in November 2023.
The National Herald case
The ED case of money laundering is against AJL and its holding company, Young Indian. The National Herald is published by AJL and owned by Young Indian Private Limited.
Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are majority shareholders of Young Indian, with 38 percent shares held by each of them.
"Young Indian and AJL properties were used for generation of further proceeds of crime in the form of bogus donations to the tune of ₹18 crore, bogus advance rent to the tune of ₹38 crore, and bogus advertisements of ₹29 crore," the ED alleged.
The case was originally filed by BJP leader Subramaniam Swamy, alleging ‘criminal misappropriation’ by both Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. It came after Young Indian acquired all the properties of AJL worth over ₹5,000 crore in 2010.
