Enforcement Directorate has revealed in an attachment order dated 11th November that Associated Journals Limited (AJL), which Congress owns, relaunched the news operations of the National Herald in 2016 to make it appear as if it was still engaged in newspaper publishing. The brand relaunching took place after ED and other agencies started probing into company affairs.
For those unaware, AJL was established by India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru, before independence in 1937. It published three newspapers, National Herald in English, Qaumi Awaz in Urdu, and Navjeevan in Hindi.
Reportedly, AJL got land in various cities to publish newspapers. In 2008, the company shut down its operations, and all the employees took voluntary retirement, as offered by AJL. At that time, the company had a debt of Rs 90 crores. Young Indian took over the operations. It was a company where Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi held majority of the shares.
When ED and other agencies started a probe into alleged money laundering in the company, congress announced the relaunching of the news operations.
In the 11th November attachment order of assets worth Rs 751 crores of AJL, ED said, “Around 2016, after various government agencies initiated an investigation, the company relaunched its news operations through a digital platform just to show that it is still engaged in publishing of newspapers.” Speaking to Hindustan Times, an unnamed officer said there was an alleged nexus of AJY, YI and AICC. Furthermore, she said that Moti Lal Vohra and Oscar Fernandes operated these entities. Both of them are now deceased. Furthermore, Structures were created in a “predetermined manner to acquire the properties of AJL by YI…,” said the ED.
Another ED official told HT that the three entities were “related entities having common office bearers and history of long association”. The ED said YI paid Rs 50 lakh to buy out the Rs 90 crore loan of AJL that was converted into equity, from AICC, and called it a “sham transaction”.
The National Herald Scam and its history so far
National Herald was started by India’s first Prime Minister, Jawaharlal Nehru in 1937 to convey the concerns of Congress’ liberal brigade. Following India’s independence, it metamorphosed into the mouthpiece of the Congress party.
The Associated Journals Limited (AJL) was the National Herald newspaper publishing company. It was also involved in the publication of the Urdu newspaper Qaumi Awaz and the Hindi paper Navjivan. By April 2008, AJL was in huge debt and owed the Congress party a whopping sum of Rs 90.26 crores.
The party had sanctioned loans to the company from time to time at 0% interest to keep it afloat. When it became unsustainable, AJL formally drew curtains over the printing and publication of its newspapers in 2008.
Debt owed to the Congress party transferred to a Gandhi-owned company
Another company by the name of Young Indian Limited (YIL) was created in 2010 as a private, not-for-profit charity under Section 25 of the Companies Act of 1956. The Gandhis (including Rahul and Sonia) owned 83.3% of the shares in YIL (as per Income Tax records).
Congress leaders Motilal Vora and Oscar Fernandes owned 15.5% and 1.2% of the shares respectively. YIL paid Rs 50 lakhs to the Congress party and transferred the debt of Rs 90.26 cr owed to it by AJL to itself.
Given that AJL was not in a position to clear its debt, Young Indian Pvt Limited acquired a majority of its share equities and, eventually, the whole company. As such, all assets of the Associated Journals Limited were incorporated into the Gandhi-owned Young Indian Limited.
This included real estate assets worth over 2000 crores, which are located in posh localities of Mumbai, New Delhi, Lucknow, Bhopal, Indore, Patna, and others. After acquiring AJL, Young Indian Limited announced that the newspaper publication was not the not-for-profit charity’s objective.
Nonetheless, in 2016, YIL relaunched the three newspapers, including the National Herald, in a digital format.
In 2011, Subramanian Swamy claimed that the Gandhis floated YIL to acquire the real-estate assets of AJL. He also accused Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi of defrauding their party and approached the trial court in 2013.
Swamy claimed that YIL was able to write off debt totaling Rs 90.26 crores for just Rs 50 lakhs. Swamy said that the decision of the Congress party to extend loans to AJL for commercial purposes was illegal.
Notably, the agency in the year 2022 filed a fresh case under the criminal provisions of the PMLA after a trial court took cognisance of an Income Tax Department probe against Young Indian Pvt Ltd based on a private criminal complaint filed by former BJP MP Subramanian Swamy in 2013.