New Delhi: The Delhi High Court on Monday issued notice to all respondents, including Congress leaders Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi, on an appeal filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) challenging a trial court order that refused to take cognisance of its money-laundering complaint in the National Herald case.
Justice Ravinder Dudeja heard the matter and fixed March 12, 2026, as the next date of hearing. The notice came after the Court heard detailed submissions from the ED, represented by Solicitor General Tushar Mehta. Senior advocates Abhishek Manu Singhvi and R.S. Cheema appeared on behalf of the Gandhi family.
Arguing for the ED, the Solicitor General contended that the trial court had committed a legal error by holding that proceedings under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) could not continue without the registration of an FIR for the scheduled offence. He maintained that the law does not mandate that a scheduled offence must originate only from an FIR and that criminal proceedings can also commence through a private complaint.
Mehta submitted that, in the present case, cognisance of the private complaint forming the scheduled offence had already been taken by a competent court and that the order had been upheld up to the Supreme Court. This, he argued, placed the case on a stronger legal footing than one based solely on a police FIR. He also informed the Court that witnesses had been examined after cognisance was taken, indicating judicial application of mind at an early stage.
During the hearing, the Court sought clarification on whether cognisance had been taken after examining the complainant. Responding affirmatively, the Solicitor General urged the bench to list the matter for final disposal on the next date. However, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi pointed out that not all respondents had been served with notice yet.
In its appeal, the ED has challenged the Rouse Avenue Court’s order declining to take cognisance of its prosecution complaint in the National Herald case. The agency has argued that the trial court wrongly interpreted the statutory framework of the PMLA by insisting on an FIR as a prerequisite for initiating money-laundering proceedings.
The trial court, while declining to take cognisance of the ED’s complaint, had clarified that it was not examining the merits of the allegations and allowed further investigation following a subsequent FIR registered by Delhi Police’s Economic Offences Wing. However, it held that the prosecution complaint, as filed by the ED, was legally unsustainable.
The ED’s case involves allegations against Sonia Gandhi, Rahul Gandhi, Sam Pitroda, Suman Dubey, Young Indian, Dotex Merchandise Pvt Ltd and others, linked to the National Herald matter.
