The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a chargesheet on April 9, 2025, in connection with the National Herald money laundering case, naming several prominent Congress leaders — including Telangana Chief Minister Revanth Reddy — for their alleged involvement in facilitating suspicious donations to Young Indian (YI). However, CM Revanth Reddy has not been listed as an accused in the case.
The chargesheet, submitted before a local court in Delhi, designates 78-year-old former Congress president Sonia Gandhi as Accused No. 1 and her son Rahul Gandhi, aged 54, as Accused No. 2 under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Five other individuals have also been formally charged.
The ED alleges that Sonia and Rahul Gandhi orchestrated a financial scheme to take control of assets worth approximately Rs 2,000 crore belonging to Associated Journals Limited (AJL), the publisher of the now-defunct National Herald newspaper, via the company Young Indian, in which the Gandhis hold a controlling stake.
As per reports, in the detailed prosecution complaint, the agency has named Revanth Reddy — then president of the Telangana Pradesh Congress Committee — along with the late Ahmed Patel and senior leader Pawan Bansal, as those who directed individuals to make donations to YI between 2019 and 2022. These donations, the ED claims, were allegedly not voluntary but made under political pressure, with promises of political favour or threats of adverse consequences.
While the names of Reddy, Patel, and Bansal feature prominently in the ED’s narrative of how funds were mobilised for YI, none of the three have been listed as accused in the chargesheet as of now.
BRS’ KT Rama Rao slams CM Revanth Reddy, calls Telangana Congress’ “ATM for scams”
Read @ANI Story | https://t.co/4Vz7VrszXE
#KTR #Revanthreddy #telangana pic.twitter.com/cPzp7OLS3e— ANI Digital (@ani_digital) May 23, 2025
BRS Working President K.T. Rama Rao (KTR) slammed Chief Minister Revanth Reddy, calling the Telangana Congress “an ATM for scams”.
National Herald case
The National Herald case involves three key players — Associated Journals Ltd, Young India Ltd, and Congress.
The National Herald newspaper was founded by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1938 in Lucknow as part of the independence movement against the British. The newspaper, published by Associated Journals Limited (AJL), became a mouthpiece of the Congress party after Independence.
When the National Herald suspended operations in 2008 due to heavy losses, it was estimated that the newspaper had properties worth Rs 2,000 crore in Delhi, Lucknow and Mumbai.
National Herald Case: Here’s everything you need to know about the case#NationalHeraldCase #Congress #Facts https://t.co/JZvcdhs0C2
— Organiser Weekly (@eOrganiser) June 16, 2022
On December 16, 2010, the AICC transferred the entire outstanding loan of Rs 90.21 crore due from AJL in favour of the appellant company, Young Indian, for a consideration of Rs 50 lakh. Further, almost 99.99 per cent of shares of AJL were transferred to Young Indian.
Congress President Sonia Gandhi, who has also been summoned by the ED for questioning on June 23, 2022, and her son Rahul Gandhi together hold a 76% stake in the Young Indian. Of the remaining 24%, deceased Motilal Vora and another Congress loyalist Oscar Fernandes held 12% each.
