The Enforcement Directorate last week sealed a part of Herald House in New Delhi and issued summons to senior Congress leader Mallikarjun Kharge asking him to be present when it carries out searches at the building as part of its probe into the finances of Young Indian.
Searches were carried out at around a dozen premises linked to Young Indian, a company controlled by Congress president Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul in their individual capacities, in connection with ED’s probe into the National Herald money laundering case.
Young Indian has its office on the fourth floor of Herald House, one of the prime properties that Young Indian acquired through a web of allegedly fraudulent transactions which is now being probed by ED for alleged money laundering.
ED sources said that the office of Young Indian had to be sealed as the search by its team could not be completed because of the absence of “authorised” Congress representatives like Kharge. ED said that the office of Young Indian would stay sealed till the search operation is completed in the presence of the senior Congress leader.
The Congress chief and her son have already been interrogated and their statements recorded over the last two months. Congress leader of Rajya Sabha Kharge is one of the office bearers of Young Indian for which his presence was sought at Herald House, according to sources.
The Gandhis and Congress are accused of an alleged £9 million transaction fraud, which the agency suspects to be a mere book entry while the party claims it had paid this amount to Associated Journals Ltd, the publisher of National Herald, to settle its dues with employees and pay them towards voluntary retirement benefits. Associated Journals was later given away with all its properties worth £80 million to Young Indian for a paltry sum of Rs 50,00,000 settling the £9 million owed to Congress. However, neither Congress nor Associated Journals Limited or its new owners, Young Indian, has provided any documentary evidence for the £9 million transaction, whether this amount was paid by Congress in cash or through cheque. Associated Journals Ltd, now taken over by Young Indian, owns properties worth over £80 million across major cities in India.
ED quizzes Kharge for 7 hours
ED questioned Mallikarjun Kharge for more than seven hours in connection with the National Herald case. The 80-year-old leader of opposition in Rajya Sabha reached the Herald House building at Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg and met ED officials on the summons of the agency which sought his attendance during the raids at Young Indian (YI) in his capacity of being the main office bearer of the company.
