ED appeal ‘abuse of process’ in National Herald case: Gandhis

NEW DELHI: Congress netas Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have said it is “abuse of the process of law” that ED has challenged in Delhi high court a trial court order refusing to take cognisance of its chargesheet against them in the National Herald-linked money laundering case.In a response filed in the high court, the Gandhis opposed ED’s revision plea saying it is “not maintainable” as trial court’s order is “perfectly legal and sound in law and does not suffer from any jurisdictional error, perversity, irregularity or illegality”.On Tuesday, Justice Sachin Datta was informed by the Gandhis’ counsel that they had filed their replies on Sept 18. HC has listed the matter for Oct 12.“Petitioner (ED) has miserably failed to demonstrate that the complaint filed by ED was maintainable under statutory provisions applicable to case. It is writ large that the words ‘private complaint’ or ‘a complaint by a public person/citizen’ do not find place in the statutory framework,” they contended.On Dec 16, 2025, trial court had held that cognisance of the agency’s complaint in the case was “impermissible in law” as it was not founded on an FIR. In its order, trial court had said ED’s probe stemmed from a private complaint, and not an FIR. Despite receiving the complaint made by BJP neta Subramanian Swamy and the consequent summoning order in 2014, CBI refrained from registering an FIR in relation to the alleged scheduled offence. ED claimed that trial court order has, in effect, given a hall pass to a category of money launderers only on ground that scheduled offence is reported by a private individual by way of a complaint to a magistrate.Opposing ED’s plea, Gandhis said this case provides the only instance where a non-statutory complaint by a private person has been made the foundation for initiating proceedings under the PMLA.