‘We are not going to be scared’: Kharge slams govt on ED chargesheet against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul in National Herald case

Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Saturday slammed Narendra Modi-led government over the Enforcement Directorate (ED) chargesheet against Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi in connection with the National Herald case.

Kharge made the remark during the meeting of all its general secretaries, in-charges and heads of frontal organisations.

The Congress chief said that it cannot be amere coincidence that ED action came immediately after AICC session.

“All this done out of vendetta,” said Kharge while referring to ED action on Gandhis and attaching National Herald properties.

Meanwhile, Kharge also spoke about Waqf Act and said that the Supreme Court has given importance to points raised by Congress and other opposition parties.

"Government, BJP leaders left no stone unturned in spreading rumours on Waqf issue; we have to go among people and expose BJP's conspiracy," said Kharge.

The Enforcement Directorate had filed a chargesheet against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi and others before a special court here in the National Herald case, accusing them of laundering ₹988 crore.

The prosecution complaint filed on April 9 under various sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) named Sonia Gandhi, a former Congress president, as the accused no 1, and her son and MP Rahul Gandhi, who is also the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, as the accused no 2.

The Congress on Wednesday held protests outside Enforcement Directorate offices across the country, and alleged that the action against its leaders showed panic and moral bankruptcy of the "despotic" government, which wanted to divert attention from public issues and economic crisis.

Meanwhile, the BJP has dared Congress leaders facing corruption charges to seek quick and time-bound disposal of cases.

Former Union minister Anurag Thakur demanded that the details of the money spent on advertisements in the paper, which is printed weekly and runs a digital platform as well, by these Congress-ruled states be made public.

He claimed that the Congress used the newspaper as its ATM, alleging that the Gandhis sought to grab properties worth ₹2,000 crore of the National Herald without investing a penny from their pockets.