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Sonia Gandhi with Rahul Gandhi. (File)The Enforcement Directorate (ED) Wednesday summoned Congress chief Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the money laundering case linked to the running of the National Herald newspaper, which is owned and run by the Congress party, according to news agency PTI.
The I-T probe against the Congress leaders arose from the investigation into a private criminal complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy before a trial court in Delhi in 2013. The complaint had alleged cheating and misappropriation of funds on part of Gandhis in the acquisition of the newspaper. Swami had alleged that the Gandhis acquired properties owned by National Herald by buying over the newspaper’s erstwhile publishers through Young Indian in which they have an 86 per cent stake.
A tax evasion petition (TEP) was also addressed to the Finance Minister by Swamy.
In the complaint before the trial court, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others have been accused of misappropriating funds by paying just Rs 50 lakh, through which Young Indian had obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore that AJL owed to the Congress.
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It was alleged that YI, which was incorporated in November 2010 with a capital of Rs 50 lakh, had acquired almost all the shareholding of AJL, which was running the National Herald.
The I-T department had said the shares Rahul Gandhi has in YI would lead him to have an income of Rs 154 crore and not about Rs 68 lakh, as was assessed earlier. It has already issued a demand notice for Rs 249.15 crore to YI for the assessment year 2011-12.
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