ED files charge sheet against Robert Vadra in land deal case

New Delhi: The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday filed a charge sheet against businessman Robert Vadra, son-in-law of former Congress President Sonia Gandhi, in connection with a money laundering case linked to a land deal in Haryana’s Shikohpur.

The prosecution complaint filed before the Delhi Rouse Avenue Court under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) arrayed a total of 11 accused individuals/entities in the case, including Robert Vadra and his Sky Light Hospitality, Satyanand Yajee, Kewal Singh Virk, and Onkareshwar Properties.

As per the ED’s chargesheet, Vadra’s Skylight Hospitality “fraudulently” purchased 3.53 acres of land situated in the village of Shikohpur in Haryana’s Gurugram district for Rs 7.5 crore from Onkareshwar Properties through “false declaration”.

It added that Vadra, “through his personal influence”, obtained a commercial license on the land purchased.

The federal anti-money laundering agency said that 43 immovable properties worth Rs. 37.64 crores pertaining to Robert Vadra and his companies were attached on Wednesday.

In April this year, Robert Vadra, the husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, was questioned in multiple rounds by the ED and his statement was recorded.

The land purchase deal in question was executed in February 2008 when Congress was at the helm in Haryana, and Bhupinder Singh Hooda was the chief minister. The mutation process, which usually takes months, was done the next day.

Months later, Vadra received a permit to develop a housing society on the land, and the value of the plot increased. He sold it to DLF in June at Rs 58 crore.

Suspecting the proceeds to be part of a money laundering scheme, the ED has been probing the trail behind the windfall gains.

In October 2012, IAS officer Ashok Khemka (now retired), who was then posted as the Director General of Land Consolidation and Land Records-cum-Inspector-General of Registration of Haryana, cancelled the land purchase deal, citing procedural irregularities.

Later in 2013, an in-house government panel gave a clean chit to both Vadra as well as DLF. When the BJP-led government came to power, an FIR was registered by the Haryana Police against former Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda, Robert Vadra and others.

IANS