The Supreme Court on Tuesday granted one week’s time to the Gandhi family to file their affidavit following which the I-T Department will file its response in the National Herald case.
#BREAKING on #GandhisTaxFile | In National Herald case, Gandhis given one week by the Supreme Court to file their affidavit, following which I-T Department will file its response https://t.co/LGCyJUEBn5
— Republic (@republic) January 8, 2019
They will have to file the affidavit on their claims that the CBDT (Central Board of Direct Taxes) on 4th January wrongly withdrew a 31st December circular that would have led to their exoneration in the National Herald tax assessment case. The next hearing of this case is slated to happen on January 29. Former Union Minister P. Chidambaram is the lawyer representing Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in this case.
In December, the Supreme Court in the National Herald case had allowed the reassessment of the tax files from of Congress President Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi 2011-2012.
As the judiciary is tightening the noose, things seem to be slipping out from the Congress party bigwigs’ hands. Earlier too, we had reported how high-strung Gandhis had tried to oppose the Income Tax’ investigation into the National Herald case. Congress had also earlier reportedly threatened tax officials with legal consequences for asking “irrelevant questions” during their investigations. Baffled with so much going against them, the Congress president had asked the court to gag media on National Herald case which the Court in all earnestness had declined.
It is notable here that the income tax assessment cases against the Congress leaders relate to an investigation into the complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy in connection with the National Herald case.
In the complaint, Swamy had accused Sonia and Rahul of conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds by paying just Rs 50 lakh, through which Young India (YI) had obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore that the Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) owed to the Congress party.
