This is an archive article published on December 9, 2015
National Herald case: Gandhis to appear before court on Dec 19, Rahul says it’s ‘vendetta’ politics
Congress leader and lawyer Abhishek Singhvi alleged that the ruling party is using proxy litigation to attack senior Congress leaders out of political malice.
New Delhi | Updated: December 9, 2015 11:17 AM IST
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National Herald case: Congress leader and lawyer Abhishek Singhvi alleged that the ruling party is using proxy litigation to attack senior Congress leaders out of political malice.
A Delhi court Tuesday directed Congress president Sonia Gandhi, party vice president Rahul Gandhi and five others accused in the National Herald case to appear before it on December 19.
The direction came a day after the Delhi High Court dismissed appeals filed by the Gandhis and five others against summons to face trial and said their conduct in the National Herald case “smacks of criminality”.
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The Gandhis and five others — Suman Dubey, Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes, Sam Pitroda and Young Indian — had challenged the Delhi court summons on a complaint by BJP’s Subramanian Swamy against them for alleged cheating and misappropriation of funds in taking control of the now-defunct National Herald newspaper.
Earlier, senior advocate Abhishek Manu Singhvi, counsel for the Gandhis, moved separate pleas before the metropolitan magistrate seeking exemption from personal appearance.
Subramanian Swamy to court:Gandhi’s informed about date of appearance in advance, this is no ground for personal exemption @IndianExpress
“We are keen to appear before the court. The Delhi High Court order has just come yesterday afternoon. We seek exemption only for today. Give us a date of the choice of the court and at the convenience of the complainant,” Singhvi told the court.
Complainant Swamy told the court that Tuesday’s date had already been fixed by the court on the last date of hearing in September.
During the proceedings, the magistrate asked the lawyers if they had the copy of the Delhi High Court order passed on Monday.
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At this point, Swamy placed a copy of the verdict before the court.
Senior advocate Ramesh Gupta told the court that accused Sam Pitroda was in the United States and he would try his best to ensure his presence in court on December 19. It was then that the court asked the lawyers to ensure that all accused appear before it on December 19.
Kaunain Sheriff M is an award-winning investigative journalist and the National Health Editor at The Indian Express. He is the author of Johnson & Johnson Files: The Indian Secrets of a Global Giant, an investigation into one of the world’s most powerful pharmaceutical companies.
With over a decade of experience, Kaunain brings deep expertise in three areas of investigative journalism: law, health, and data. He currently leads The Indian Express newsroom’s in-depth coverage of health.
His work has earned some of the most prestigious honours in journalism, including the Ramnath Goenka Award for Excellence in Journalism, the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) Award, and the Mumbai Press Club’s Red Ink Award.
Kaunain has also collaborated on major global investigations. He was part of the Implant Files project with the International Consortium of Investigative Journalists (ICIJ), which exposed malpractices in the medical device industry across the world. He also contributed to an international investigation that uncovered how a Chinese big-data firm was monitoring thousands of prominent Indian individuals and institutions in real time.
Over the years, he has reported on several high-profile criminal trials, including the Hashimpura massacre, the 2G spectrum scam, and the coal block allocation case. Within The Indian Express, he has been honoured three times with the Indian Express Excellence Award for his investigations—on the anti-Sikh riots, the Vyapam exam scam, and the abuse of the National Security Act in Uttar Pradesh. ... Read More
3 min read
National Herald case: Congress leader and lawyer Abhishek Singhvi alleged that the ruling party is using proxy litigation to attack senior Congress leaders out of political malice.
