The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has submitted a prosecution complaint — commonly known as a chargesheet — against businessman Robert Vadra in a case linked to alleged money laundering and questionable land transactions. The case centres around a plot located in Shikohpur, Gurugram. The chargesheet filed by the central agency includes the names of 10 others along with Vadra.
According to officials cited by news agency PTI, the financial probe agency has attached 43 properties, estimated to be worth over ₹36 crore, in connection with the case.
The matter will be taken up by the Rouse Avenue Court on Friday, where the court will consider whether to take cognisance of the chargesheet filed against Vadra, who is married to Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, news agency IANS reported.
Plot Purchase Under ED Scanner
The case in question pertains to a 3.5-acre plot in Shikohpur, allegedly purchased by Vadra’s firm Skylight Hospitality. The ED’s prosecution complaint, filed in December 2023, had previously elaborated on Vadra’s alleged involvement in another deal routed through NRI businessman C.C. Thampi.
This land deal stems from a First Information Report (FIR) registered at Kherki Daula police station in Gurugram, based on a complaint filed by Surinder Sharma. According to the FIR, Skylight Hospitality bought the land from Onkareshwar Properties in 2008 for ₹7.5 crore and later sold it to DLF Universal Limited, a subsidiary of real estate firm DLF, for ₹58 crore in 2012, The Print reported.
Role of Bhupinder Hooda & Alleged Quid Pro Quo
The ED initiated its Enforcement Case Information Report (ECIR) in January 2019, naming Skylight Hospitality, DLF, and then Haryana Chief Minister Bhupinder Singh Hooda. At the time, Hooda also held the portfolio of the town and country planning department.
Sharma’s complaint alleged that Skylight Hospitality obtained the commercial licence for the land using Hooda’s influence, allowing the firm to develop a residential colony on the site. The FIR further accused the Hooda-led Congress government of engaging in a quid pro quo by facilitating DLF’s purchase of the plot at a high price. In return, the Haryana government allegedly allotted 350 acres in Wazirabad, Gurugram, to DLF—a deal from which the company reportedly gained ₹5,000 crore.
However, in March 2022, the town and country planning department revoked DLF’s licence, stating that no development activity could be carried out on the Wazirabad land, The Print’s report stated.
Slow Probe and Legal Back-and-Forth
In April 2023, Haryana Police informed the Punjab and Haryana High Court through an affidavit that “no regulations/rules have been violated in said transaction [between Vadra’s Sky Light Hospitality and DLF].” The BJP-led Manohar Lal Khattar government echoed this in court, clarifying that the 350-acre parcel remained government property.
Following political backlash, the Khattar administration later clarified that a tehsildar’s report was incorrectly being treated as an official clean chit. A government spokesperson in April 2023 noted that the SIT probe was still underway, stating: “The focus of the SIT (Special Investigation Team)’s probe is not limited to just the revenue loss; rather, it aims to expose all those involved in the criminal conspiracy, with the motive of giving high financial gains to certain individuals or a quid pro quo involving underhand dealings.”
Despite these assertions, the High Court expressed disapproval over the prolonged pace of the investigation. According to The Print, in November 2023, Justice Harpreet Kaur Jeewan remarked: “We find that in FIR No. 288 dated 01.09.2018 registered under sections 420, 468, 471, 120-B IPC and Section 13 of the Prevention of Corruption Act, police station Kherki Daula, Gurugram, the investigation has been crawling since the last five years. Therefore, we direct the investigation [to] be completed in this case at the earliest.”
Speaking to reporters outside the ED headquarters, Robert Vadra alleged that the timing of the summons was politically motivated. He said he was being targeted for voicing support for minority rights and for declaring his intent to enter active politics.
