National Herald Case

The Enforcement Directorate filed a chargesheet against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald case on 15 April 2025. This alleged corruption case has been ongoing since 2012, when Janata Party leader Dr Subramanian Swamy filed a complaint in the matter.

In the complaint filed by Dr Swamy, alleged that both Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have committed fraud and land grabbing worth Rs 1600 Cr by acquiring a public limited company called Associated Journals Limited (AJL). This is being an very old company, that was publishing a news paper called  National Herald, which was a Congress mouthpiece. They acquired the company through their privately owned company Young Indian (where each of them held 38% stake ).  Previous to their acquisition, the Congress party have funded Rs 90 Cr to revive their publishing business. All India Congress party had approved this loan to AJL at 0% interest.

Dr Swamy further alleged that, on 26^th February 2011, AJL approved transfer of an unsecured loan of Rs 90 Cr from All India Congress Committee, with all 9 Cr of the company’s share of Rs 10 each to Young Indian. Dr Swamy argued that it is illegal for a political party to lend money for commercial purposes as per section 29A to C of the Representation Act 1951.

The hearing of the criminal proceedings case was taken up by Magistrate on various dates while the defendants opposed the petition asked the magistrate to dismiss it. The court finally observed that prima facie evidence against all the accused was found. The court issued summons to the defendants to appear in the court to defend themselves against the allegations made by Dr Swamy.

Friends, please note that all these happened when UPA 2 government headed by Congress party was in power at the centre.

On 26^th June 2014, Metropolitan Magistrate summoned Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes and Sam Pitroda to appear in the court on 7^th August 2014 ( all of them are associated with Young Indian Ltd). The magistrate said that according to the evidence so far, “ it appears that YIL was in fact created as a sham or a cloak to convert public money to personal use” to acquire control over Rs 2000 Cr worth of AJL assets. The court noted that all accused persons had allegedly acted “in consortium with each other to achieve the said nefarious purpose/design.

The accused approached the Delhi High Court, where Dr Swamy was served notice to file reply in High Court. The Gandhis tried all the gimmickry in High Court and even in the Supreme Court. In the end SC granted exemption to all the accused in the case from personal appearances while refusing to quash proceeding against them.

On 11^th March 2016 the trial court allowed, Dr Swamy’s plea to examine balance sheets of AJL and YIL from 2010 to 2013, which was later overturned by Delhi High Court.

The SC allowed the income-tax department reassess the 2011-12 tax filings of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi, even as the Congress leaders await a court verdict on the legality of I-T notices to them.

The ED permanently attached properties worth Rs 64 Cr in National Herald case in May 2019. Again in Nov 2023, the ED attached properties worth Rs 751.9 Cr.

This case is the classic example how politicians make the mockery of Indian judicial system, as for the last 13 years nothing concrete has happened in this case, except  the attachment of properties held earlier by AJL.

If you see the sequence, how Gandhis wanted to swindle in this case is a classic case of how Indian politician work

• Young Indian Limited is created with share capital Rs 5 lakhs, with Gandhis controlling the majority stake over 75%+.
• The Congress working committee approves a loan of Rs 90 Cr to AJL to revive National Herald, which is also illegal as the political parties can not invest in commercial establishment.
• YIL acquired the complete stake in AJL, and afterwards raises a request to The Congress Committee to waive off Rs 90 Cr loan as the company is unable to repay.
• So by spending Rs 5 lakh on share capital of YIL, the Gandhis got control of AJL’s property worth more than Rs 2000 Cr.

And now Congress party and Gandhis say that this is political vendetta by the BJP to demean Gandhis. The fact is that the case originated in the tenure of UPA 2, where even the SC never quashed this case against Gandhis, and allowed the trail court to continue with the case.

As per Congress party, in cases of such nature there are steps that include 1. Filing of Complaint, 2. FIR, 3. Chargesheet, 4. Court trial and then 5. Verdict. In this after 11 years of Modi government, we have only reached the third stage. Therefore the case reeks of political calculations from the government side.

But the Congress party forgets that their legal experts are there to see that by hook or crook the case should not proceed further, as they keep on extending the dates concerning this case.

Yes it is true that, the government will use this case to suit their convenience, so that they get maximum mileage out of it.

This case will keep on going, and no idea when the verdict will come. Only good thing which has come out from this case is that the Gandhis are not in position to sell the assets of AJL which they acquired in YIL, for which purpose all this happened.

Waiting for your views on this blog.

Anil Malik

Mumbai, India

21^st April 2025