Robert Vadra skips ED summons, asks for another date

ED’s probe is against fugitive arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari, in which Vadra is under the scanner

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) asked Congress leader Sonia Gandhi’s son-in-law Robert Vadra to appear before it on Tuesday in connection with a money laundering probe linked to fugitive arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari, but the businessman sought another date for questioning, people familiar with the development said.

The next date of questioning is yet to be decided. (HT file photo)

Bhandari, 61, is under investigation by multiple agencies, including ED, the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), the Income Tax department and the Delhi Police, for money-laundering, violation of foreign exchange as well as black money laws, and the Official Secrets Act for having access to sensitive defence documents.

The Indian government sent two extradition requests against the fugitive businessman which were certified by the then UK home secretary Priti Patel in June 2020, after which British authorities arrested him on July 15, 2020. However, on February 28 this year, a King’s bench division at the UK high court allowed Bhandari’s plea against his extradition to India, primarily on the grounds that he would be at real risk of extortion, torture or violence in Tihar jail, from other prisoners or prison officials, which means his extradition to India is now not possible.

ED’s probe against Bhandari, in which Vadra is under the scanner, relates to two properties in London as well as some land parcels in India.

“We had summoned Vadra on Tuesday, but he sought adjournment and sought a next date. We will decide the next date soon,” said an officer.

The federal agency has claimed that one of the properties at 12, Bryanston Square, London, acquired by Bhandari in 2009, is linked to Vadra, as it was “renovated” on his directions and using his funds. The agency has also claimed that Vadra has stayed in this property “three-four times”. The second property under the scanner is located at 6, Grosvenor Hill Court, 13 Bourdon Street in London. Both are being treated as “proceeds of crime” of Bhandari and NRI businessman C C Thampi under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

In a charge sheet filed in November 2023, ED had alleged that Vadra and his wife Priyanka Gandhi Vadra bought land in Haryana through a Delhi-based real estate agent who also sold land to Thampi, while adding that Vadra and Thampi have a “long and thick” relationship that extends to “common and business interests”.

Earlier, in April this year, ED questioned Vadra in connection with a separate probe related to a 2008 land deal in Gurugram’s Shikohpur.

HT reached out to Vadra on Tuesday for a comment but there was no response. The copy will be updated whenever it is received.