ED Names Robert Vadra In Money Laundering Case For First Time

The Enforcement Directorate (ED), a law enforcement agency in India, has brought forward a serious case involving Robert Vadra, who is related to a well-known Gandhi political family. The case is about illegal money, known as black money, and laundering it.

Robert Vadra is the son-in-law of former Congress President Sonia Gandhi and brother-in-law of Congress leader Rahul Gandhi.

Vadra is being linked to CC Thampi, a businessman dealing in arms, who is currently hiding in the UK. Thampi is a close associate of Vadra. The ED says that Vadra has done business with Thampi and even bought land with him in Haryana. They also have other financial connections.

The case also involves a London property at 12 Bryanston Square. Originally bought by Sanjay Bhandari in 2009, it was later sold to Thampi in 2010. However, the ED believes that this property actually belongs to Vadra and Thampi was just a cover to hide Vadra’s real ownership.

Furthermore, the ED claims that Vadra not only helped renovate Bhandari’s London flat but also stayed there. Bhandari, also an arms dealer, is accused of creating complicated company networks in the gulf country and the UK to hide illegal money and assets.

The case gets more complex with different stories from Vadra and Thampi. Vadra says he met Thampi by chance on a plane, but Thampi’s statements suggest deeper connections, including one to Sonia Gandhi’s assistant, P.P. Madhavan.

Sanjay Bhandari is also a central figure in this case. He, along with Thampi and another associate, Sumit Chadha, is accused of using companies abroad to hide illegal money. The ED is trying to bring Bhandari back to India from the UK, but there are legal challenges.

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This is the first time Vadra is directly named in such a case by the ED. The court will hear more about this on January 29 next year. This case involves high-profile individuals and raises questions about illegal money laundering.