The Enforcement Directorate is set to challenge a Delhi court order that refused to take cognisance of its chargesheet against senior Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case, according to officials familiar with the development.
The decision follows an order passed on Tuesday by a special court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) at Rouse Avenue Courts. The court declined to proceed with the chargesheet filed by the ED in April, observing that the probe was initiated on the basis of a private complaint rather than a first information report linked to a scheduled or predicate offence.
Officials said the Delhi Police&rsquo;s Economic Offences Wing had already registered an FIR in October based on the ED&rsquo;s complaint and is expected to complete its investigation soon. Once the police probe concludes, the ED is likely to get a valid predicate offence, allowing it to revive its money laundering case under the law.
The ED launched its investigation in 2021 following a court order that took cognisance of a private complaint related to the National Herald newspaper and its parent company, Associated Journals Limited. During the probe, the agency questioned Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and several former and current officials of AJL.
In April this year, the ED filed a chargesheet accusing Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi under provisions of the PMLA related to money laundering, offences by companies, and punishment under the Act. The case carries a maximum sentence of seven years. The chargesheet also named Young Indian Private Limited, a company in which the Gandhis together hold a 76 percent stake, along with its directors Sam Pitroda and Suman Dubey.
The agency has alleged that the Gandhis were beneficial owners of AJL assets worth around ₹2,000 crore, acquired through Young Indian for a nominal amount. The ED has identified proceeds of crime worth nearly ₹988 crore and had earlier attached assets worth over ₹750 crore, including the National Herald building.
With the court declining to accept the chargesheet, the ED may now have to restart key procedural steps, including questioning, attachment of assets, and filing a fresh chargesheet based on the Delhi Police FIR. A similar approach was adopted by the agency in a previous case involving alleged irregularities in Chhattisgarh liquor contracts.
Associated Journals Limited was established in 1937 and published the National Herald in English, Qaumi Awaz in Urdu, and Navjeevan in Hindi. The company ceased publishing operations in 2008 due to mounting losses and was later taken over by Young Indian in 2010.

Probe agency plans challenge after court rejects chargesheet against Gandhis

ED to Appeal Court Order in National Herald Case

Probe agency plans challenge after court rejects chargesheet against Gandhis

December 16, 2025 | 14:47 IST