National Herald Case: 5 lakhs in 2010 and now 800 crores worth of assets! Why Sonia-Rahul in circle? Learn
National Herald’s property is on prime location of big cities
The Associated Journal Limited (AJL), the parent company of the National Herald newspaper, the mouthpiece of the Congress party, was almost closed by 2008. Then its owner i.e. Congress party decided to find another option of earning from its properties located at prominent places of Delhi, Mumbai, Panchkula, Lucknow and Patna. The company also decided to stop printing the newspaper. According to a report in Times of India, the Congress party had bought its properties located in prime locations of these cities at throwaway prices at the time when its governments were in the respective states. However, its purpose was to bring light to the party’s newspapers.
Young Indian is a company owned by the Gandhi family.
In November 2010, Sonia Gandhi, Oscar Fernandez and some other close friends of the Gandhi family formed a new company, Young Indian. When this company came into existence, it had a capital of only 5 lakh rupees. Shortly after, it allegedly took a loan of Rs 1 crore from a Kolkata-based shell company to transact with the Congress party to acquire AJL and all its assets. As of today, Sonia Gandhi, her son Rahul Gandhi and daughter Priyanka Gandhi are the largest shareholders of Young Indian Company.
5 lakh in 2010 and now 800 crore rupees!
According to preliminary investigation by the Enforcement Directorate, Young Indian, a company owned by Sonia Gandhi and her two children, which started with just Rs 5 lakh in 2010, today has assets worth Rs 800 crore across the country. Whereas, he doesn’t seem to have any big financial business as well. This amazing growth of the company in just 12 years is under ED’s scrutiny. A passport office is functioning in its prime property Herald House located on Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg near ITO in capital Delhi. The property in Panchkula, which was allotted to AJL and which has been attached by the ED in a money laundering case, is estimated to be worth Rs 65 crore (the market price could be higher).
Income tax exemption was available before the formation of the company!
The Income Tax Department had also challenged the purchase of Associated Journal Limited (AJL) by Young Indian in the Delhi High Court (based on the 2017 assessment report). The High Court had confirmed the allegations of the Income Tax Department and allowed it to open the IT returns of Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, who hold majority shares in Young Indian. In fact, Young Indian was made a charitable institution under section 25, which was exempted from tax. The Gandhi family company had applied for this exemption to the Income Tax Department on March 29, 2011 (to be applicable from the year 2010-11) when the Congress-led government was at the Center and on May 9, 2011 without any problems. That was also approved. This means that even when the company had not come into existence and had not even applied for it, it had got tax exemption since then.
Also read- Congress President Sonia Gandhi got corona infected, in home isolation
A setback has been received from Delhi High Court
Young Indian is struggling to control its (National Herald’s) prized possessions, which includes Delhi’s Herald House. Its estimated value is in hundreds of crores. The Ministry of Housing and Urban Development had canceled its lease on the ground that instead of publishing the newspaper, it was using it for financial gain, which was in violation of the rules of the lease. The Gandhi family had filed a petition in the Delhi High Court against this order, which has been dismissed. The property of Panchkula has also already been confiscated by the ED. Sonia and Rahul Gandhi have to tell the Enforcement Directorate officials about these ‘successes’ of the company.
