'I am Indira Ji's daughter-in-law...': Sonia Gandhi's video surfaces ahead of ED quizzing

Ahead of her appearance before the ED in the National Herald case on Thursday, Congress shared an old video of Sonia Gandhi to showcase her determination to face any situation. In the video which dates back to December 2015, she is heard saying, "I am Indira (Gandhi) Ji's daughter-in-law and I am not scared of anyone". She was reacting to her being summoned by a trial court along with her son Rahul Gandhi in connection with this case. Dubbing the ED action as "politics of revenge", Congress has decided to stage protests across the country today. 

While the Congress president was originally summoned on June 8, her appearance date was pushed forward to June 23 after she tested positive for COVID-19. However, she could not appear on that day as she was “strictly advised to rest at home following her hospitalization on account of COVID-19 and a lung infection”. From June 13-21, Rahul Gandhi was quizzed by the ED for about 54 hours spread over 5 days.

What is the National Herald case? 

In 2013, BJP Rajya Sabha MP Subramanian Swamy filed a private criminal complaint wherein he accused Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others of conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds. He specifically highlighted that Young Indian Pvt. Limited paid only Rs.50 lakh to obtain the right to recover Rs.90.25 crore that Associated Journals Limited (AJL) owed to Congress. On December 19, 2015, the Gandhi mother-son duo got bail on furnishing a personal bond of Rs.50,000 each and a surety after the court ruled out apprehension that they will flee the country.

In February 2021, the Delhi High Court issued notice to the Gandhis seeking their response to Swamy's plea seeking to lead the evidence in the matter before the trial court. However, they contended that the plea by the BJP parliamentarian was "misconceived and premature". The ED registered a case under PMLA after a trial court in Delhi took cognizance of the Income Tax probe against Young Indian Pvt. Limited. In 2015, the investigation wing of the I-T department submitted a detailed Tax Evasion Petition against some persons including Rahul Gandhi.

It alleged that the Lok Sabha MP concealed the information that he was the director of Young Indian Pvt. Ltd and one of its largest shareholders while submitting his I-T returns for 2011-12. As AJL had prime properties across India including in Delhi, Mumbai, Patna, Panchkula and Lucknow, Young Indian Pvt Ltd. became the owner of these assets when it purchased the shares of the former. Earlier this year, Rajya Sabha LoP Mallikarjun Kharge and former Union Minister Pawan Kumar Bansal were quizzed by the ED in connection with this case.