Today, On 29th July, In the National Herald money laundering case, the Rouse Avenue Court deferred its order on taking cognisance of the ED chargesheet. The court will first inspect the documents on August 7 and 8 before deciding.
New Delhi: The Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi has postponed its decision on whether to take cognisance of the charge sheet filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) in the National Herald money laundering case.
The court said that it will now hear the matter on August 7 and August 8 for the purpose of inspection.
After that, the court will give a date for pronouncing its order on whether it will take cognisance of the charge sheet or not.
The Enforcement Directorate had recently filed a charge sheet in this high-profile case. In the charge sheet, the ED has named senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, along with Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda, Sunil Bhandari, the company Young Indian, and Dotex Merchandise.
According to the ED, this case involves money laundering activities linked to the takeover of Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), which used to publish the National Herald newspaper. The ED had registered a case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) after the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) filed its preliminary inquiry.
Earlier, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi were also questioned by the ED in this case.
The court, after receiving the charge sheet, has not yet taken a decision on whether the contents of the charge sheet are enough to proceed with a trial. Instead, it has decided to inspect the documents and will carry out this inspection on August 7 and 8.
Only after this step will the court fix a date for passing the order on cognisance.
The court’s statement said that the matter is being listed for inspection first.
It said,
“The matter be now put up on August 7 and 8 for inspection. Thereafter, date shall be given for order on cognisance.”
Also Read: National Herald Case || Delhi HC Extends Stay on Trial Proceeding
The agency alleges that assets worth over Rs.800 crore were acquired illegally by Young Indian through the acquisition of AJL. The charge sheet reportedly explains how the funds were moved and how Dotex Merchandise played a role in the financial dealings related to this case.
The case has been a matter of public interest for several years, involving allegations of financial irregularities related to the National Herald newspaper.
The case revolves around the acquisition of assets and financial dealings involving the newspaper, which was founded by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1938. The allegations suggest that the Gandhi family, through their ownership of Associated Journals Limited (AJL), the publisher of National Herald, had misused funds and engaged in illegal practices to benefit from the newspaper’s assets.
Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and other prominent figures have faced allegations of financial misconduct, which they have strongly denied. The legal proceedings have been a subject of ongoing discussion in political circles, with each side accusing the other of misusing the legal process for political gain.
The National Herald case involves a Rs.90 crore loan provided by the Congress party to Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), the publisher of the National Herald, which was assigned to Young Indian for a sum of Rs.50 lakh. Allegations have been made regarding the misappropriation of assets exceeding Rs.2,000 crore in this equity transaction.
The case stems from a complaint filed by Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy. He accused the Gandhis and others of conspiring to acquire shares of the National Herald newspaper and its associated company, AJL, by using funds in a way that violated laws.
The Enforcement Directorate (ED), On April 15 2025, submitted a prosecution complaint against the Gandhis, along with Congress leader Sam Pitroda and others involved.