Robert Vadra grilled for 9 hours on day 2, Priyanka picks him up from ED office
Vadra’s questioning ended at around 9 pm after which his wife and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra picked him up.
Congress chief Rahul Gandhi’s brother-in-law Robert Vadra was questioned for more than nine hours by the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a money laundering case.
His questioning ended at around 9 pm after which his wife and Congress general secretary Priyanka Gandhi Vadra picked him up.
Vadra was questioned for the second consecutive by the Enforcement Directorate on Thursday in connection with a money laundering case.
He arrived at the ED office around 11.30 am, about an hour after his team of lawyers. After two hours of questioning, he left for lunch and returned about an hour later to resume the session, news agency PTI reported.
Priyanka had dropped him off at the ED’s office in central Delhi, in a move seen as a message to Congress’s opponents ahead of Lok Sabha polls.
“He is my husband, he is my family...I support my family,” Priyanka said. Asked if it was a political vendetta, she said, “Everyone knows why this is being done”
Priyanka’s comment came hours the BJP attacked the Congress over ED’s summons to Vadra. BJP spokesperson Sambit Patra alleged that Vadra benefited from a petroleum and a defence deal which took place in 2008-09 when the UPA was in power. “He (Vadra) bought properties worth crores from black money received through kickbacks,” Patra said.
Also read: As Robert Vadra faces ED heat, wife Priyanka says ‘I stand by him’
Wednesday was the first time Robert Vadra appeared before any central probe agency in connection with allegations of dubious financial dealings and comes days after Priyanka Gandhi was formally inducted into the Congress party as the general secretary incharge of eastern Uttar Pradesh.
The Congress has said the charges against Robert Vadra are “fickle, superficial, non-existent, non-substantive”.
Vadra’s lawyer Suman Jyoti Khaitan said his client appeared on his own and cooperated with investigators. “Whatever questions were put to him, he answered all. This is a politically motivated case and Vadra has always denied all the charges,” he said.
The Enforcement Directorate has alleged that Vadra is the controlling beneficiary of a property in London located at 12, Bryanston Square there. The property is worth GBP 1.9 million. It was sold by an alleged arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari, who is on the run now.
Also Read: On ED questioning Robert Vadra, Mamata Banerjee talks of opposition unity
ED had a prepared a questionnaire for Robert Vadra which contained questions about his links with the London-based property and Sanjay Bhadari. ED also wanted to quiz him about a property at Delhi’s Malcha Marg which was owned by a trust.
Later, an associate of Vadra, Jagdish Sharma became convener of the trust. Sharma, too, was present outside the ED office when Vadra’s questioning began. He denied all allegations.
Robert Vadra sought protection from the arrest from the court on which the court granted interim bail till February 16. In his plea, Vadra alleged that a malicious criminal prosecution has been launched against him which is politically motivated.
Also read: ‘Tomorrow it can be PM Modi’: Congress leader on ED summons to Robert Vadra
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