Kalaburagi (Karnataka): Congress President Mallikarjun Kharge on Wednesday accused the BJP-led central government of using investigative agencies to “unnecessarily trouble” Congress leaders, following the Enforcement Directorate’s (ED) chargesheet against Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi in the National Herald money laundering case.
In an interview with ANI, Kharge vowed to organize nationwide protests and challenged the legitimacy of the ED’s actions:
“There is nothing in the case. It was shut for some time due to financial difficulties. Sonia Gandhi tried to revive the publication through loans and donations. Now they say it’s wrong to take a loan. BJP is working against the law. We’ll prove what’s right. Our protests will be nationwide.”
The ED filed its prosecution complaint (chargesheet) on Tuesday at Delhi’s Rouse Avenue Court, naming Rahul Gandhi, Sonia Gandhi, and other senior leaders including Sam Pitroda and Suman Dubey, under various sections of the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), 2002.
The case is listed for arguments on cognisance on April 25.
When asked about Robert Vadra being questioned by the ED in a separate Gurugram land deal case, Kharge distanced the party from the issue:
“That is his personal matter. He is capable of replying. The party has no involvement.”
Meanwhile, Congress workers staged protests across India, with leaders alleging that the BJP is misusing government agencies like the ED and Income Tax Department (IT) to harass opposition leaders.
In Odisha’s capital Bhubaneswar, state Congress President Bhakta Charan Das led a protest, slamming the timing and intent behind the ED’s actions:
“Whenever BJP faces governance issues or political setbacks—like in Bihar now—they start using ED and IT to target Congress leaders. Today’s protests are happening in front of ED and IT offices across every state capital.”
Das added that this pattern of “political intimidation” intensifies near elections and weakens democratic institutions by turning agencies into “instruments of fear.”