New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notice to Congress Parliamentary Party chairperson Sonia Gandhi, Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha Rahul Gandhi, and others on a criminal revision petition filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), challenging a trial court order that refused to take cognisance of its money laundering complaint in the alleged National Herald case.
After hearing arguments from the ED, a single-judge Bench of Justice Ravinder Dudeja sought responses from the Gandhis and issued notice on both the main plea and the accompanying stay application.
The court has listed the ED’s petition, which challenges the Rouse Avenue Court’s dismissal of its prosecution complaint under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), for further hearing on March 12, 2026.
Earlier, Special Judge (PC Act) Vishal Gogne of the Rouse Avenue Court had declined to take cognisance of the ED’s complaint, holding that it was not maintainable in law. While granting relief to Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, the trial court clarified that the ED was free to continue its investigation in accordance with the law.
Apart from the Gandhis, the ED has named Congress Overseas chief Sam Pitroda, Suman Dubey, Sunil Bhandari, Young Indian, and Dotex Merchandise Private Limited as proposed accused in the case.
Appearing for the ED, Solicitor General Tushar Mehta submitted before the High Court that allowing the trial court’s order to stand would render the PMLA ineffective. “This brings the PMLA on its head. It becomes otiose and redundant if this order is to sustain,” he argued.
The Centre’s second-highest law officer contended that the trial court had committed a serious error by holding that the ED could not act in cases where a court had already taken cognisance of a private complaint under Section 200 of the Criminal Procedure Code.
He further argued that such an interpretation could have wider implications, potentially affecting several other cases by implying that only a police FIR could trigger proceedings under the PMLA.
During the hearing, the High Court asked whether there were instances where the ED had initiated action after a court had taken cognisance of a private complaint. In response, Mehta said the PMLA does not prescribe any specific mode or manner for registering a money laundering offence, adding that an allegation of criminal activity linked to a scheduled offence is sufficient to invoke the law.
The high-profile case pertains to allegations that senior Congress leaders conspired to illegally acquire control over assets worth more than Rs 2,000 crore belonging to Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), the original publisher of the National Herald newspaper, by paying a nominal amount of Rs 50 lakh through Young Indian, a company in which Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi are majority shareholders.
The controversy surrounding the National Herald assets dates back to 2012, when BJP leader Subramanian Swamy filed a private complaint in a trial court, accusing Congress leaders of cheating and breach of trust in the acquisition of AJL.
With IANS inputs