Delhi HC Refuses to Block AJL Property Release in National Herald Case
The Delhi High Court declined to stop AJL from seeking the release of attached properties in the National Herald money laundering case.
The Delhi High Court on Monday declined to issue an interim order that would prevent Associated Journals Limited (AJL) from attempting to secure the release of its attached properties. This development comes amidst the ongoing legal battle in the National Herald case, where the Enforcement Directorate (ED) is investigating allegations of money laundering.
The Legal Tug-of-War
Justice Sachin Datta was presiding over a petition filed by the ED. The agency is challenging a previous decision by a trial court, which had refused to take cognisance of its money laundering complaint. The complaint involves several high-profile figures, including Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, as well as the entities Young Indian and AJL.
During the proceedings, Additional Solicitor General SV Raju, representing the ED, raised concerns regarding AJL's strategy. He informed the court that AJL was attempting to use the trial court's order—which declined to take cognisance of the ED's complaint—as a legal lever to seek the release of properties that the agency had previously attached.
Key Properties Under Scrutiny
The ED has attached multiple assets linked to both AJL and Young Indian. Among the most significant properties is the Herald House, located on Bahadur Shah Zafar Marg near ITO in Delhi. The agency maintains that these assets are tied to a complex money laundering scheme involving the acquisition of control over AJL, the publisher of the National Herald newspaper.
Court's Stance and Next Steps
Despite the ED's concerns, Justice Datta stated that the High Court would not be passing any interim order at this particular stage. The judge noted that, as the proceedings currently stand, the parties involved were not being treated as accused within the specific context of the current court proceedings.
In response to the situation, the Additional Solicitor General suggested that the involved parties could seek an adjournment before the PMLA appellate tribunal until the next scheduled hearing in the High Court. The court has now listed the matter for further hearing on November 2.
Background of the Controversy
The core of the National Herald investigation involves allegations that transactions between AJL and Young Indian—a company associated with Sonia and Rahul Gandhi—were part of an illegal money laundering operation designed to gain control over the media house.
The legal complexity intensified in December 2025, when a special court at Rouse Avenue declined to take cognisance of the ED's complaint. The trial court had ruled that the prosecution's complaint was not maintainable, arguing that the ED's case was built upon a private complaint filed by BJP leader Subramanian Swamy rather than a formal First Information Report (FIR) stemming from a scheduled offence. The accused parties have consistently disputed all allegations of wrongdoing.