- Businessman Robert Vadra is under ED investigation for money laundering linked to a London property
- The property at 19 Bryanston Square was purchased by arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari
- ED alleges Vadra is close to Bhandari and is the real beneficiary owner of the property
Businessman Robert Vadra, husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra and brother-in-law of Leader of Opposition Rahul Gandhi, was questioned for about five hours by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) at their central Delhi office in a money laundering probe linked to two property deals in London. Mr Vadra had reached the agency's office at 11 am, accompanied by his wife Ms Gandhi Vadra, MP from Kerala's Wayanad. He took a lunch break in between and left the ED office after 5 pm.
The probe pertains to two properties at 19, Bryanston Square and Grosvenor Hill Court, 13 Bourdon Street in London, owned by UK-based arms consultant Sanjay Bhandari. The ED alleges these are benami properties of Mr Vadra, and is now probing his alleged link to Mr Bhandari.
ED sources suggest Mr Vadra did not cooperate during Monday's questioning. He could not answer questions about his financial relations with Mr Bhandari and his family, said ED sources.
Mr Vadra had earlier denied the allegations and claimed he was being "hounded and harassed".
The Bryanston Square property, which was acquired by Mr Bhandari in 2009, was funded by Mr Vadra and later renovated on his direction, officials have claimed, adding that the businessman stayed at this property on multiple occasions during his London visits.
Both properties now feature among a list of land parcels being probed by the ED as alleged "proceeds of crime" under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The federal agency that investigates high-profile economic offences had filed the PMLA case in 2016.
Mr Vadra had skipped at least two ED summons in this case last month, with sources suggesting the businessman was abroad to attend his daughter's graduation ceremony.
The ED is now probing the benami transactions linked to Mr Bhandari, who is wanted in the country on charges of tax evasion and money laundering. Besides the ED, he is also being probed by the Income Tax department, CBI, and Delhi Police for violations ranging from foreign exchange laws to the Official Secrets Act.
A special court in Delhi declared Mr Bhandari a fugitive economic offender a week ago in connection with an income tax case involving undisclosed foreign assets. Two extradition requests against him in the UK were blocked earlier this year by a UK court, citing his potential mistreatment in Indian prisons.
Another key figure in this case is NRI businessman CC Thampi, who allegedly played a significant role in facilitating the property deals through a Dubai-based company.
Mr Vadra was earlier questioned by the federal agency in April in another money laundering probe linked to a 2008 land deal in Haryana. The ED probe was over a land that was bought by Mr Vadra's company, Skylight Hospitality, for Rs 7.5 crore and later sold to DLF for Rs 58 crore.
The businessman had then called the ED action a "political witch hunt" against him and his family.
