Lok Sabha LoP Rahul Gandhi and Rajya Sabha MP Sonia Gandhi. (image-X/ghoshi_manjeet)

Calling it “politics of vendetta and intimidation”, the Congress said it would hold protests outside the Enforcement Directorate (ED) offices on Wednesday after the agency filed a chargesheet against seven persons, including Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, in connection with its money laundering probe in the National Herald case.

Congress leader Jairam Ramesh called the seizure of National Herald’s assets “a state-sponsored crime masquerading as the rule of law.” Describing the chargesheet a part of “vendetta politics” and “intimidation” by Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Home Minister Amit Shah, Ramesh said the party will fight back against the charges.

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Here is a detailed timeline on the events:

All the way back in 1938, India’s first Prime Minister and Congress supremo Jawaharlal Nehru, along with other freedom fighters, founded the National Herald. The newspaper aimed to become the voice of the freedom movement.

After India gained independence in 1947, the newspaper, published by Associated Journals Limited (AJL), became a mouthpiece of the party. Along with the National Herald, AJL also published two other newspapers, one in Hindi and the other in Urdu.

In 2008, the National Herald closed down with a debt of over Rs 90 crore to the Indian National Congress (INC).

In 2012, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy filed a complaint before a Delhi court, accusing Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and other senior Congress leaders of orchestrating a fraudulent takeover of AJL, estimated to be worth over Rs 20,000 crore.

According to Swamy, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Sam Pitroda, Oscar Fernandes and others were involved in a criminal conspiracy to acquire AJL’s assets fraudulently through Young Indian Limited (YIL), a company beneficially owned by the two Gandhis, for a nominal sum of Rs 50 lakh.

Two years later, The court summons Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, and other accused, including Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes, and Sam Pitroda, to appear.

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In December 2015, following the complaint, Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes, and Suman Dubey were granted bail by the Patiala House Court.

In 2016, all five accused were granted an exemption by the Supreme Court from personal appearances but declined to terminate the proceedings against them.

In 2018, Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi secure bail in the case. The Centre terminated the 56-year-old perpetual lease and moved to evict AJL from the Herald House premises, citing that the organisation was no longer engaged in any printing or publishing activity – the stated purpose for which the building was originally allotted in 1962.

In 2019, the Supreme Court ordered a stay on the proceedings against AJL until further notice.

In 2021, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) began its investigation on the basis of a June 2014 order from Delhi’s Patiala House court based on Swamy’s complaint.

In 2023, the ED attached immovable assets located in Delhi, Mumbai, and Lucknow in November 2023. As part of the investigation, the ED conducted a series of searches and seizures at multiple locations and claimed to have uncovered documents pointing to more layers of financial irregularities. The ED claimed that the AJL-YIL network was allegedly used to generate illicit funds of Rs 18 crore through bogus donations, advance rent of Rs 38 crore, and Rs 29 crore through advertisements.

In 2025, the agency said it had issued notices to take possession of immovable assets worth Rs 661 crore, which had earlier been attached as part of the probe.

On April 9, a chargesheet was filed by the ED’s special public prosecutor NK Matta under Sections 3 and 4 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), accusing the Gandhis and others of laundering Rs 988 crore. According to the ED’s prosecution complaint, Sonia Gandhi, former Congress president, is listed as the primary accused, followed by Rahul Gandhi, the current Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha.

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The chargesheet also includes Congress-linked individuals Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda, the companies Young Indian and Dotex Merchandise Private Limited, and Sunil Bhandari of Dotex Merchandise as accused.

The next hearing has been scheduled for April 25.