30 June 2014
In connection with a corruption case filed by BJP leader, Subramanian Swamy, a magistrate court in Delhi, summoned Sonia and Rahul Gandhi for hearing on 7 August.
Mrs. Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi floated a private company called Young Indian to acquire a public limited company called the Associated Journals Ltd. This company owns National Herald and Quami Awaz Newspapers. It also owns several high value real estate properties in Delhi and Uttar Pradesh. Sonia and Rahul own ¾ of the shares of Young Indian and are in full control of the company.
Associated Journals was founded by Jawaharlal Nehru, the first Prime Minister of independent India.
Young Indian paid Rs 5 million to Associated Journals and took over a loan of Rs 900 million which was owed by Associated Journals to the Congress Party. This arrangement was formalised by a resolution passed by Associated Journals on 26 February 2011.
Swamy claims in his affidavit that it was illegal for All India Congress Committee (AICC) being a political party to give a loan to a company. Swamy asserts that according the Company Registry the current shareholders of Associated Journals are Jawahar Lal Nehru, Indira, Feroze Gandhi, GD Birla and other like noted deceased persons. Eighty percent of the shareholders are not alive today. It was under these dubious circumstances the ownership of Associated Journals was transferred.
Swamy further alerts that, according to the filings with the Registry of Companies, the resolution of 26 February was passed in 10, Janpath, a residence officially allotted the Government to Sonia and this address could not be used for commercial purposes. Therefore it is a violation of the law. This accusation may sound frivolous but does seem to indicate a trend when looked at along with other incidents.
Swamy urged immediate action by Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO) and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) to investigate deal between Young Indian and The Associated Journals and also the illegality of the AICC’s loan to a private company since the AICC President is Ms Sonia Gandhi and General Secretary Rahul Gandhi who are also owners of Young Indian. Furthermore the Associated Journals Ltd.’s Chairman Shri Motilal Vore is also the Treasurer of the AICC. Swamy added that Rahul Gandhi in his election affidavit failed to disclose his 38% holding in Young Indian along with his mother’s ownership of 38%.
We know that Swamy is a maverick politician. You may remember the court case he filed in connection with the 2G Spectrum allocation was upheld, all allotted licenses cancelled, and the Central Minister of Telecommunications A.Raja was sent to jail. This happened when Congress was in power. But now Congress is no longer in power. He is a Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader and BJP is now in power. Swamy had filed many other cases and succeeded in several of them. So there seems to be reasonable chance of winning this case as well.
