ongress Parliamentary Party Chairperson Sonia Gandhi and LoP in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi | PTI
New Delhi: In a fresh development involving the Congress-controlled Associated Journals Limited (AJL), the Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued notices to the property registrars in Delhi, Mumbai, and Lucknow for the possession of properties valued at Rs 661 crore, an official said on Saturday.
These properties were previously attached during the investigation, which revealed significant use, generation, and possession of proceeds of crime amounting to Rs 988 crore.
In Delhi, the notice was affixed on the wall of AJL’s property at 5 (A), Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg in Central Delhi — a location housing various media and newspaper offices.
The ED served the notices on Friday, complying with Section 8 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002, and Rule 5(1) of the Prevention of Money Laundering (Taking Possession of Attached or Frozen Properties Confirmed by the Adjudicating Authority) Rules, 2013.
Action taken at Herald House in Mumbai
In Mumbai, Jindal South West Projects Limited — occupying the 7th, 8th, and 9th floors at Herald House in Bandra (East) — also received a notice. The company was instructed to transfer its monthly rent or lease payments in favour of the Director, Directorate of Enforcement.
A similar notice was pasted on AJL’s property located at number 1, Bisheshwar Nath Road, in Lucknow.
Previous raids uncovered key documents
The ED had earlier carried out raids and seizures at multiple premises, where it found documents linked to suspected money laundering activities.
Investigations revealed that Young Indian — a private firm beneficially owned by Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi — had acquired AJL’s properties valued at Rs 2,000 crore for only Rs 50 lakh, significantly undervaluing the assets.
Bogus transactions uncovered
The ED further alleged that Young Indian and AJL assets were used to generate additional proceeds of crime through bogus donations worth Rs 18 crore, fabricated advance rent of Rs 38 crore, and fake advertisements totalling Rs 29 crore.
Legal battle stems from Swamy’s complaint
The investigation began in 2021, following a cognisance order dated 26 June 2014 by the Metropolitan Magistrate of Patiala House Courts in New Delhi. This was based on a private complaint filed by Subramanian Swamy.
The complaint accused several prominent political figures — including Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, the late Motilal Vohra, the late Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda, and Young Indian — of participating in a criminal conspiracy linked to a money laundering case.
Courts uphold ED probe
Despite legal challenges, the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court upheld the proceedings, allowing the ED to continue its investigation, said the agency in a statement
IANS
Subscribe to our Newsletter
IN CASE YOU MISSED IT
.jpg?$p=fa725f5&q=0.8&f=16x11&w=104)
