The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has refuted news reports claiming Congress leader Rahul Gandhi was grilled for 20 hours in connection with money laundering charges related to the National Herald case.
The premier central agency said the Gandhi scion was questioned only for 6 hours, and the rest of the time spent was used by him to review his answers.
The clarifications came in the wake of multiple news reports that said the Enforcement Directorate had the Wayanad MP put on the wringer for 20 hours as Rahul Gandhi arrived on Wednesday in the ED office for the third straight day of questioning in the National Herald money laundering case.
As per ED sources quoted by Times Now, the agency had questioned Rahul Gandhi for approximately 3 hours on Monday and for the same amount of time on Tuesday. The rest of the time, the ED source reportedly said, was utilised by Gandhi to evaluate and proofread his responses. The responses are reviewed, corrected and retyped before they are signed by Gandhi.
Gandhi has been recording his statement in multiple sessions in connection with the National Herald case. After Tuesday’s questioning, the Gandhi scion has reportedly clocked roughly over 20 hours of interrogation with the ED officials. However, reports quoting agency sources say the former Congress president has been thoroughly checking the transcript of his statements before submitting them.
Rahul Gandhi questioned by ED over National Herald case
On Monday (June 13), Congress scion Rahul Gandhi appeared before the Enforcement Directorate after he was issued a summons by the central agency in connection to a money laundering case related to the National Herald case.
He was interrogated for several hours and his statement was recorded under Section 50 of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Reportedly, the Congress leader was quizzed by the Assistant Director of the ED and the questioning was supervised by a Deputy Director.
Gandhi’s statement was typed out by another officer. He may be summoned for further questioning on Tuesday (June 14). It must be mentioned that the ED had recorded the statements of all those involved in the case, with the exception of Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi.
National Herald scam
The National Herald scam is one of the most notable legal cases in Indian history, as the Gandhis are directly accused. The Mother-Son duo of Congress President Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul, along with their aides – Oscar Fernandez, Motilal Vohra and Sam Pithroda are alleged to have been involved in massive ‘cheating and breach of trust’ in the acquisition of Associated Journals Ltd (AJL) by Young Indian Pvt Ltd (YIL). Assets worth crores of rupees had been allegedly transferred for purposes other than originally intended for a paltry sum. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi got unconditional bail in December 2015.
