Congress interim president Sonia Gandhi appeared for the third round of questioning on Wednesday before the Enforcement Directorate office in connection with a money laundering case linked to the National Herald newspaper.
Mrs Gandhi reached the ED office accompanied by her daughter Priyanka Gandhi Vadra.
The Congress workers continued to protest at All India Congress Committee (AICC) party headquarters at 24 Akbar Road in Delhi against the questioning of Gandhi.
Talking about the same, Rajasthan Chief Minister and Congress leader Ashok Gehlot on Wednesday said that there should be a timely Supreme Court decision on the terror of ED in the country.
Addressing a press conference along with Ghulam Nabi Azad, Jairam Ramesh and Anand Sharma, Gehlot said, “First they summoned Rahul Gandhi. He was interrogated for several hours in five days. Sonia Gandhi has been summoned for the third time today. We have no idea how long it would last. There should be a timely SC decision on the terror of ED in the country.”
Meanwhile, Congress workers also tried to stop a train at Mumbai’s Borivali railway station in protest against ED questioning of the party’s interim president.
On Tuesday, ED questioned Sonia Gandhi for over six hours on the second day of her appearance.
The 75-year-old had left the agency’s office in central Delhi just before 7 pm on Tuesday after recording her statement.
As per the sources, Gandhi’s response was sought to around 30 questions regarding her involvement with the National Herald newspaper and Young Indian Pvt Ltd, the company under investigation.
Her questioning at the ED office in central Delhi went on for nearly 2.5 hours beginning at 11 am and continuing after a 90-minute lunch break until 7 pm.
The sources stated that Gandhi was asked about the functioning of the newspaper, the role of its various office bearers, and her and Rahul Gandhi’s involvement in the affairs of the National Herald and Young Indian.
Officials said the agency would also confirm her statement with that of Rahul Gandhi, as both are majority stakeholders in Young Indian Pvt Ltd.
Condemning the agency’s action, Congress called it a “political vendetta”.
On Tuesday, Rahul Gandhi and around 50 Congress MPs were detained for holding a protest march from the Vijay Chowk to the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
Due to the protest, the entire area was cordoned off and the passersby had to face trouble while commuting through the area due to heavy police presence.
Today also, the party headquarters and nearby area is heavily deployed with security.
The Congress MPs on Tuesday said that they wanted to draw the President’s attention to the alleged misuse of central agencies by the government when they were stopped by the police.
Besides, Gandhi and other MPs, Youth Congress President Srinivas BV was also present at the protest site.
Earlier, Sonia Gandhi could not appear for questioning on June 8 after testing positive and being hospitalized for COVID-19. After her discharge from the hospital, she had asked for more time to appear before the agency.
