The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has taken fresh steps in the ongoing National Herald money laundering case, targeting assets linked to senior Congress figures Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The agency has begun formal proceedings to seize properties tied to the duo, sources revealed.

On April 11, the ED issued directives to property registration offices in Delhi, Mumbai, and Lucknow to initiate the process of taking control of assets held by Associated Journals Limited (AJL). These properties were transferred to Young Indian Limited (YIL), a firm in which both Sonia and Rahul Gandhi hold significant shares.

The investigation centers around claims of financial misconduct involving the acquisition of AJL, the former publisher of the National Herald newspaper. The case was triggered by a 2014 complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy, who alleged that the takeover by Young Indian was deliberately orchestrated to capture real estate assets worth more than ₹2,000 crore.

According to the ED, the latest action follows the confirmation by an Adjudicating Authority of a previous order attaching AJL’s properties. The agency claims to have traced proceeds of crime amounting to ₹988 crore linked to these properties, which it says were acquired through illicit means.

Back in November 2023, the ED had provisionally attached real estate assets in the three cities, valuing them at approximately ₹661 crore. Additionally, shares of AJL worth over ₹90 crore were also frozen. These attachments were formally confirmed by the authority on April 10.

In a related move, the ED has also issued a notice to Jindal South West Projects, the current lessee of three floors in Mumbai's Herald House building. The company has been instructed to deposit all upcoming rental payments directly with the ED, rather than with AJL or Young Indian.

The agency claims that a web of financial transactions was employed to launder funds through a complex structure involving political figures. The investigation, which began in 2021, builds on Swamy’s original criminal complaint alleging that AJL’s extensive property portfolio was taken over for just ₹50 lakh.

Despite facing legal pushback, the ED probe continued with the backing of both the Delhi High Court and the Supreme Court. Over the course of its inquiry, the ED carried out multiple raids and claimed to have found new evidence revealing deeper financial irregularities.

The agency further asserts that the AJL-Young Indian arrangement was allegedly used to funnel unaccounted income—through inflated donations amounting to ₹18 crore, advance rent worth ₹38 crore, and ₹29 crore from advertising revenue.

Officials say the seizure action is intended to prevent the continued use and monetization of what they describe as unlawfully acquired assets.