Sonia Gandhi summoned by ED on July 21

Story by  ATV | Posted by  Nakul Shivani • 1 Years ago
Sonia Gandhi with Rahul Gandhi
Sonia Gandhi with Rahul Gandhi

 

New Delhi

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has issued fresh summons to Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi to appear before it on July 21 in the National Herald case.

She has been asked to depose at the ED headquarters at 11 am.

The fresh summon was issued as Sonia Gandhi could not join the ED investigation in the case earlier due to COVID-19.

The Congress leader had developed a mild fever on June 1 evening and was found COVID-19 positive upon testing the next morning.

Sonia Gandhi had been summoned by the ED to appear before its investigators on June 8 for the first time in connection with a money laundering case involving the National Herald.

The ED last month questioned Rahul Gandhi on several occasions in the case.

It is investigating alleged financial irregularities under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

The case was registered about nine months ago after a trial court took cognisance of an Income Tax Department probe carried out on the basis of a private criminal complaint filed by former BJP MP Subramanian Swamy in 2013.

Swamy had approached the court alleging that the assets of Associated Journals Limited (AJL), which published the National Herald newspaper, were fraudulently acquired and transferred to Young Indian Pvt Limited (YIL), in which Sonia Gandhi and her son owned 38 per cent shares each.

He had alleged that the Gandhis cheated and misappropriated funds, with YIL paying only Rs 50 lakh to obtain the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore that AJL owed to the Congress.

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The ED is currently investigating the shareholding pattern and financial transactions as well as the role of party functionaries in the functioning of AJL and YIL.