The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has summoned Robert Vadra, son-in-law of Congress leader Sonia Gandhi, in connection with a land deal in Shikohpur village, Gurugram. The summons were issued under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), and Vadra has been directed to appear before the federal agency on Tuesday. According to officials familiar with the case, this is the first time Vadra has been summoned in relation to this probe, which stems from a 2018 FIR filed by the Haryana Police.
The case revolves around a February 2008 transaction, in which Vadra’s firm, Skylight Hospitality Pvt Ltd, reportedly purchased 3.5 acres of land in Shikohpur from Onkareshwar Properties for ₹7.5 crore. Notably, the mutation of the land was allegedly completed within just 25 hours—a move that raised red flags for investigators. An ED official confirmed that Vadra has been summoned to clarify financial transactions related to this deal.
This development follows a charge sheet filed in November 2023 against fugitive arms dealer Sanjay Bhandari and British national Sumit Chadha in a separate probe. In December 2023, it was first reported that the charge sheet mentioned land purchases by Robert Vadra and Priyanka Gandhi Vadra through a Delhi-based real estate agent, who also facilitated land transactions with NRI businessman CC Thampi. While the couple has not been named as accused, the ED referenced these transactions to establish a connection between Vadra and Thampi.
According to the agency, Thampi—who was arrested in January 2020—admitted to knowing Vadra for over a decade. He claimed to have been introduced to Vadra by Madhavan, the personal assistant of Sonia Gandhi, and mentioned several meetings with Vadra in both the UAE and Delhi. Between 2005 and 2008, Thampi allegedly acquired 486 acres of land in Amipur village, Faridabad, through agent HL Pahwa.
The ED further stated that Robert Vadra had purchased three pieces of land totaling 334 kanals (approximately 40.08 acres) in Amipur from HL Pahwa between 2005 and 2006 and later sold them back to Pahwa in 2010. Similarly, Priyanka Gandhi Vadra had bought 40 kanals (around 5 acres) of agricultural land from Pahwa in 2006, which she sold back to him in 2010. The agency suspects that Pahwa was facilitating land acquisitions through cash transactions “out of the books,” and claims Vadra did not pay the full sale consideration for these deals.
Additionally, the ED is probing Robert Vadra’s alleged involvement in the purchase of a London-based property—12 Ellerton House, Bryanston Square—valued at 1.9 million pounds. The agency claims that Sanjay Bhandari acquired this property in 2009 and renovated it on Vadra’s instructions, with funds allegedly provided by Vadra himself. Dubai-based businessman CC Thampi, associated with Sky Lite Investments FZE and the Holiday Group, is believed to have played a key role in facilitating the purchase.
In response to the ongoing investigation, Vadra commented, “It’s a free for all in this country… truth has no place. Witch-hunt continues for almost a decade. Another decade more and we will be referring to what happened in 2010, 2011, 2012 and on and on.” As of Tuesday, Hindustan Times reached out to Vadra regarding the summons, but no further statements were reported.
