Congress MP Rahul Gandhi has now been asked to appear before the Enforcement Directorate (ED) for questioning in a money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper on June 13, after he sought a new date citing his foreign tour.
Mr Gandhi, who was earlier asked to join the investigation on June 2, had written to the probe agency, to postpone the date as he is currently on a foreign tour, and is likely to arrive in the country on June 5.
Meanwhile, party president Sonia Gandhi, who tested positive for Covid-19 yesterday, is expected to depose before the federal agency at its headquarters in central Delhi on June 8.
Congress chief spokesperson Randeep Surjewala said Mrs Gandhi has isolated herself, and she will again get herself tested before her appearance.
The case pertains to the ED probe into the alleged financial irregularities in the party-promoted Young Indian that owns the National Herald newspaper. The newspaper is published by Associated Journals Limited (AJL).
The agency registered a fresh case under the criminal provisions of the PMLA after a Delhi court took cognisance of an Income Tax Department probe against Young Indian Pvt Ltd on the basis of a private criminal complaint filed by BJP MP Subramanian Swamy in 2013.
The questioning of the senior Congress leaders and the Gandhis is part of the ED’s investigation to understand the shareholding pattern, financial transactions and role of the promoters of Young Indian and AJL, officials said.
The probe agency recently also questioned senior Congress leaders Mallikarjun Kharge and Pawan Bansal in the case.