National Herald Case: Court Declines Cognisance of ED Complaint Against Sonia and Rahul Gandhi

Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court on Tuesday declined to take cognisance of proceedings linked to a fresh FIR in the National Herald case , noting that the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) investigation is rooted in a private complaint, not an FIR. However, the court permitted the agency to continue its probe.

The court also ruled that Congress leaders Rahul Gandhi , Sonia Gandhi and other accused are not entitled to a copy of the FIR at this stage. It clarified that cognisance could not be taken because the ED’s case flows from a private complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy and subsequent summoning orders by a magistrate, rather than an FIR.

Reacting sharply, the Congress termed the ED’s action against its top leadership as politically motivated and legally flawed. The party said the court had effectively pointed out a lack of jurisdiction, arguing that an FIR is a prerequisite for such proceedings. In a post on X, the Congress claimed, "Truth has prevailed. The malafide and illegality of the Modi govt stands fully exposed. Proceedings of ED against the Congress leadership - Smt Sonia Gandhi Ji and Shri Rahul Gandhi Ji, in the Young Indian case have been found completely illegal and malafide by the Honourable Court."

"No case of money laundering, no proceeds of crime and no movement of property - all baseless charges that have been a part of political witch hunt, propaganda, reputation assassination and campaign which stands defeated today," it added.

Separately, the Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing (EOW) has registered an FIR against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others on a complaint by the ED as part of the money laundering investigation. The Congress responded by accusing the BJP of harassment, intimidation and vendetta, alleging misuse of investigative agencies by the “Modi-Shah duo” and reiterating that the National Herald case is “completely bogus.”

Rejecting these charges, senior BJP leader and former law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad called the Congress’s claims baseless. He pointed out that the private complaint dates back to 2008, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi was not in office. Prasad added that the FIR charges Sonia and Rahul Gandhi under Sections 120B (criminal conspiracy) and 420, and has been filed under the old penal code due to the age of the case, urging that the law be allowed to take its course.