Tomorrow’s 2nd probable Enforcement Directorate questioning of Sonia Gandhi

For her second round of interrogation in the money laundering case involving the National Herald newspaper, Congress President Sonia Gandhi is scheduled to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Tuesday.

According to officials, she is scheduled to appear in deposition before the federal investigation agency on July 26 around noon so that the ED investigating officer can record her statement.

She was initially summoned by the agency on Monday, but it was postponed by a day.

Sonia Gandhi, 75, was questioned for more than two hours on July 21 during her first day of depositions in the case. During that time, she responded to 28 questions posed by the agency looking into alleged financial irregularities at the Congress-backed Young Indian Private Limited, which owns the National-Herald newspaper.

According to officials, all Covid-appropriate procedures, including the stationing of doctors and an ambulance, the issuance of investigators’ “Covid negative” certificates, and the appropriate physical separation between Gandhi and the team of investigators, will be implemented on Tuesday, just as they were on Gandhi’s first day of appearance.

Rahul Gandhi and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, Sonia Gandhi’s children, are anticipated to join her at the ED headquarters once more like they did last week.

If additional medical attention or medication is needed, Priyanka Vadra may stay behind once again. The agency’s move against its senior leadership has been criticised and referred to as a “political vendetta” by the Congress.

The almost one kilometre road between her home and the ED office is scheduled to be blocked off by a sizable contingent of Delhi Police, including members of the CRPF and RAF.

The Gandhis were being questioned as a result of the ED filing a new case late last year in accordance with the penal provisions of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act.

In 2013, BJP MP Subramanian Swamy filed a private criminal complaint that led to a trial court in this location taking cognizance of an Income Tax department investigation against Young Indian.

The principal shareholders and one of the promoters of Young Indian are Sonia and Rahul Gandhi. Like her son, the president of the Congress owns 38% of the company.

Young Indian paid merely 50 lakh to get the right to reclaim 90.25 crore that Associate Journals Limited owed to the Congress, according to Mr. Swamy, who also claimed that the Gandhis and others conspired to deceive and misappropriate cash.

The Gandhis were served with a notice by the Delhi High Court asking them to respond to Swamy’s argument in February of last year. The ED questioned Mallikarjun Kharge and Pawan Bansal, two leaders of the Congress, in the matter in April.