The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has claimed that the Associated Journals Limited (AJL), a company linked to the Congress party, relaunched its news operations around 2016 as a digital platform to create the impression that it was still involved in publishing newspapers. Established in 1937 by Pandit Jawaharlal Nehru, AJL published the National Herald, Qaumi Awaz in Urdu, and Navjeevan in Hindi.
The ED alleges that AJL, which was given land in various cities at concessional rates to run the National Herald, closed its newspaper operations in 2008. The company offered voluntary retirement to all employees, and by then, its debt had risen to ₹90 crore. In 2010, Young Indian (YI), a company in which Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi hold a significant stake, took over AJL.
The Congress party announced in 2016 that it would relaunch the news operations. The ED claims that this relaunch through a digital platform was a facade aimed at demonstrating continued engagement in publishing newspapers.
The ED’s attachment order, dated November 11, states that AJL’s assets worth ₹751 crore were attached. The order points to a nexus between AJL, YI, and the All India Congress Committee (AICC), the central decision-making body of the Congress party. The ED alleges that the three entities operated through common office bearers, and structures were created to acquire AJL’s properties by YI.
The ED further claims that the ₹50 lakh transaction by YI to buy out the ₹90 crore loan of AJL from AICC was a “sham transaction.” The agency suggests that the investigation is ongoing in the National Herald case.
The Congress party has defended the transaction, stating that it was done to save the newspaper, pay salaries, and revive AJL during a period of financial strain. The party accuses the central government of pursuing an old issue for political vendetta.
As of now, the investigation into the National Herald case continues, with both the ED and Congress presenting differing perspectives on the matter.
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[…] example cited by the ED involves a property in Bhopal, where AJL sold portions of the building before the lease agreement’s expiry. Another case involves AJL mortgaging a plot in Panchkula to avail a loan for constructing a […]