Raids were also conducted at locations in Bengaluru, according to Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials. (File Photo) Raids were also conducted at locations in Bengaluru, according to Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials. (File Photo)

The Enforcement Directorate on Friday conducted searches at three locations in Delhi connected to close aides of Congress president Rahul Gandhi’s brother-in-law Robert Vadra. The raids were conducted in connection with financial assets held abroad.

Raids were also conducted at locations in Bengaluru, according to Enforcement Directorate (ED) officials. The agency claimed that searches against Vadra’s associates were conducted over alleged commission received by accused in defence deals.

“They have locked our people of Skylight hospitality inside, they are not allowing anyone to go inside. Is this Nazism? Is this a jail?” Suman Jyoti Khaitan, a lawyer representing Vadra, told reporters outside one of the locations that the ED raided.

“It has been 4.5 years and they found nothing, so now they are locking us outside and planting and fabricating evidence,” the unnamed lawyer was quoted as saying by ANI.

The raids come two days after Vadra was issued a summons by the investigating agency, which he termed as a “political witch-hunt”. Vadra had alleged that the government departments were operating on an “agenda” to “besmirch” his reputation.

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) had summoned Vadra in connection with its money laundering probe in a land scam case in Rajasthan’s border city of Bikaner, officials had said last week.

“The political witch-hunt carries on unceasingly with government departments clearly operating on an agenda to besmirch my dignity and reputation,” Vadra had alleged in a Facebook post.

In a statement issued by Congress spokesperson Randeep Surjewala, he mocked the ED’s raids on Friday saying it was motivated by the upcoming election results. “Dictators resort to illegal raids when their popularity fades!” he said in a press release on Friday.

“Politics of revenge and malicious vendetta has today reached its nadir. Modi ji is acting like a ‘Don’ lording over a criminal empire to persecute & hound everyone opposed to him. In last 54 months, Modi Govt has let loose a criminal conspiracy to vilify, denigrate & malign Shri Robert Vadra to settle political scores.

“As all else failed, Modi Government has unleashed all its agencies including ED, CBI & Income Tax to victimize Shri Robert Vadra in an utterly mala fide manner,” the release said.

In a press conference held today, Surjewala accused the BJP government at the Centre of making a mockery of the rule of law and Constitution. “In a brazen affront to the rule of law and to Constitution, on the polling day, officers of Enforcement Directorate (ED) from Jaipur & Delhi raided the office of Shri Robert Vadra at Sukhdev Vihar, New Delhi as also the residence of his associate, his sister and her in-laws at Noida, without any FIR or search warrant,” the release stated.

“Sure shot defeat in 5 States unnerves Modi Govt to again use the old tools – unleash revenge & vendetta against Mr Robert Vadra to divert the narrative. Such cowardice & intimidation will not subjugate either the Congress Party or the will of people,” he tweeted.

Sure shot defeat in 5 States unnerves Modi Govt to again use the old tools – unleash revenge & vendetta against Mr. Robert Vadra to divert the narrative. Such cowardice & intimidation will not subjugate either the Congress Party or the will of people. Satyamev Jayate! — Randeep Singh Surjewala (@rssurjewala) December 7, 2018

In a statement released today, Congress also said that the party fought the British and decimated them to win Independence for India. We also every other challenge from across the border and never bowed down. A despotic Prime Minister and a Government myriad in Crime can never deter the Congress party or the people of this country, it said.

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