'Outrageous act of political vendetta': Tamil Nadu CM Stalin flays ED questioning of Rahul Gandhi in National Herald case

New Delhi: Condemning the Enforcement Directorate (ED)`s questioning of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi, Tamil Nadu Chief Minister MK Stalin called it an outrageous act of political vendetta against the Congress party. Staling tweeted, "I condemn the outrageous act of political vendetta against Congress party and its leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi by the ruling BJP government using the Enforcement Directorate." Taking a jibe at the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), he said the parties should lock horns politically and `not by forcing ED`. "Having no answers to the pressing issues of the common man, BJP uses such diversionary tactics to save itself from the public ire. Political opponents should be fought politically, not by `forcing` the Enforcement Directorate," he further tweeted. 

It may be noted that Congress leader Rahul Gandhi reached Enforcement Directorate (ED) office on Wednesday to join the investigation in connection with the National Herald case for the third consecutive day. For the last two days, Rahul Gandhi was questioned for about 18 hours by a three-member ED team. On Tuesday, his questioning ended at about 10 pm but he left the ED headquarters at around 11.45 pm.

On Monday, Rahul Gandhi's questioning ended at about 9 pm but he reportedly had to wait for more hours at ED headquarters. The agency officials questioned him for several hours, and was also given a lunch break after three hours. During this break, Rahul went to meet his mother, and Congress President Sonia Gandhi, who is undergoing treatment at Sir Ganga Ram Hospital. After this, he returned to the ED`s headquarters where he was again questioned till late in the night. Notably, Sonia Gandhi has also been summoned in the matter. She is likely to appear before ED on June 23.

On Tuesday, the 51-year-old senior Congress leader reached ED headquarters along with his sister Priyanka Gandhi and was deposed before the investigators shortly after his entry into the building. Rahul Gandhi, a Z+ category protectee of the Central Reserve Police Force, was asked again to join the probe as investigators were not satisfied with the answers he gave to them during questioning on Monday, official sources told ANI.

The Congress leader is being questioned about the ownership of Young Indian Private Limited (YIL) by the Gandhi family and its shareholding in Associate Journals Limited (AJL), the company that runs the National Herald newspaper. The National Herald, started by India`s first Prime Minister Jawaharlal Nehru, was published by the AJL. In 2010, the AJL, which faced financial difficulties, was taken over by a newly-floated YIL with Suman Dubey and Sam Pitroda as directors, both of them Gandhi loyalists.

In a complaint in the Delhi High Court, BJP leader Subramanian Swamy accused Sonia Gandhi and her son, Rahul Gandhi, and others of conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds. Officials familiar with the probe told ANI that Rahul Gandhi is being asked questions about the takeover of the AJL by YIL since the Gandhis have stakes in the latter.

The Wayanad MP is being questioned under criminal sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The ED is also investigating the financial transactions as well as the role of party functionaries in the functioning of AJL and YIL. National Herald is published by the AJL and owned by YIL. 

(With Agency Inputs)