New Delhi: The Delhi Police Economic Offences Wing has filed a fresh FIR accusing Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, along with six others, of criminal conspiracy in the alleged irregular takeover of Associated Journals Ltd, the company that once published the National Herald.
The move stems from material shared by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) following its long running money laundering probe.
FIR Cites Young Indian’s Role in AJL Takeover
According to the FIR dated October 3, investigators allege that the acquisition of AJL was carried out through Young Indian, in which Sonia and Rahul together held 76 percent of the shares. The complaint forming the basis of the FIR was submitted by the Enforcement Directorate’s Headquarters Investigative Unit, which passed on its findings under Section 66(2) of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.
The Enforcement Directorate’s inquiry, which covers the period from 2008 to 2024, originated from a private complaint filed by former BJP MP Subramanian Swamy. A Delhi court took cognisance of that complaint in June 2014, allowing the agency to pursue a money laundering investigation linked to AJL and its assets. The Enforcement Directorate filed a prosecution complaint in April this year before the special court for MPs and MLAs, although the court has not yet taken cognisance of it.
The latest FIR names Sonia, Rahul and three others, including Sam Pitroda, who heads the Indian Overseas Congress. It also lists Associated Journals Ltd, Young Indian and Dotex Merchandise Pvt Ltd, the latter described in the complaint as a Kolkata based shell entity that allegedly provided one crore rupees to Young Indian. From that amount, fifty lakh rupees was reportedly paid to the Congress, which then enabled Young Indian to take control of AJL’s assets, valued at close to two thousand crore rupees.
BJP Targets Congress as Party Denies Allegations
Following news of the FIR, BJP spokesperson Shehzad Poonawalla sharply criticised the Congress leadership, calling it “the most corrupt family” and accusing it of treating corruption as a “right”. He said, “If there is any action against them, they start playing the victim card.” He added that “no court case has stopped the National Herald proceedings” and described the dispute as a “classic case of zameen chori”.
The Congress has denied the allegations and described the case as "politically motivated".
