The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has temporarily concluded its questioning of businessman Robert Vadra in connection with the Gurgaon land deal, sources confirmed on Friday. However, officials clarified that the investigation is far from over, with further evidence collection and witness examination still underway.
Vadra’s interrogation, which spanned over 16 hours across three days and concluded on Thursday, pertained specifically to one of the ongoing money laundering cases. ED sources indicated that additional witnesses linked to the case will soon be summoned, and fresh summons for Vadra himself remain a possibility should new evidence surface or cross-questioning become necessary.
“Questioning of Robert Vadra is over in only one case. Other witnesses to be examined and evidence to be collected. Long way to go,” said a senior official familiar with the matter.
In parallel, the ED is deepening its investigation into two other cases against Vadra. One involves his alleged association with fugitive arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari, connected to the purchase of London-based properties with suspected kickbacks from defence deals. The other concerns a Bikaner land deal involving land meant for displaced persons, allegedly acquired using forged documents.
The agency is expected to file separate prosecution complaints (chargesheets) in all three cases once sufficient evidence and witness statements have been gathered. Sources noted that while the process is ongoing, formal charges against Vadra could be filed simultaneously in due course.
Amid these developments, the ED also filed a chargesheet in a separate case—the National Herald money laundering case—naming Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi. The two senior Congress leaders stand accused of illegally acquiring assets worth ₹5,000 crore through their control of Young Indian, which had taken over Associated Journals Ltd (AJL), the former publisher of the National Herald newspaper.
In the Gurgaon land deal, Vadra is accused of purchasing land for ₹7.5 crore and reselling it shortly after for ₹58 crore. His alleged close links to businessman CC Thampi and Sanjay Bhandari have come under scrutiny, with financial trails suggesting potential involvement in defence-related kickbacks, including India’s procurement of 75 Pilatus trainer aircraft. The ED claims bribes totaling ₹310 crore were funneled through Bhandari’s Dubai firm and used to buy property in Dubai and London.
In the Bikaner case, the ED alleges that Vadra’s firm, Skylight Hospitality, bought 275 bighas of land using forged documents for ₹72 lakh, later reselling it for ₹5.2 crore. The agency has seized related assets in Delhi.
Another ED chargesheet filed in November 2023 highlighted a series of land transactions between Vadra, Priyanka Gandhi, and CC Thampi involving 531 acres in Faridabad and a 12-acre parcel in Gautam Budh Nagar. The Faridabad property was eventually resold to developer HL Pahwa, who transferred it to companies associated with the DLF group. While the court began framing charges in December 2023, Vadra and Priyanka Gandhi were not formally named as accused.
With investigations intensifying across multiple fronts, the ED is expected to widen the net in the coming weeks, keeping Vadra and his associates firmly in the spotlight.
