As ED attaches Robert Vadra's properties, here is how the process works

Indian Express

17-07-2025

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has filed a chargesheet against businessman Robert Vadra, the brother-in-law of the Leader of Opposition in the Lok Sabha, Rahul Gandhi, and the husband of Congress MP Priyanka Gandhi Vadra, in connection with a money laundering case over a land deal.
An ED official said that after completing their investigation, a prosecution complaint was filed at the Rouse Avenue Court in Delhi against 11 individuals or entities, including Robert Vadra's M/s Sky Light Hospitality Pvt Ltd. The court is yet to take cognisance of the prosecution complaint.
'Probe has revealed that the commercial license was also obtained by Robert Vadra on the land through his personal influence. A provisional attachment order was issued on July 16, 2025, in which 43 immovable properties amounting to Rs 37.64 crore pertaining to Robert Vadra and his entities M/s Sky Light Hospitality Pvt. Ltd. and others have been attached,' the ED official said.
How does the ED attach the properties of someone accused in a case, and what happens then? We explain.
Provisional attachment
According to Section 5 of PMLA, the Director of ED or any other officer (Deputy Director and above) authorised by him can issue orders for attachment of a property that is suspected to have been acquired with the proceeds of crime in a case of scheduled offence. The attachment order is issued if the Director feels that 'such proceeds of crime are likely to be concealed, transferred or dealt with in any manner which may result in frustrating any proceedings relating to confiscation of such proceeds of crime'.
The order is valid for 180 days. If it is not confirmed by an ED-appointed Adjudicating Authority by then, the property is automatically released. Because the initial attachment is provisional, the accused can continue to enjoy the property until the Adjudicating Authority confirms the attachment — after which the ED has the power to claim possession.
However, this is largely a procedural step, because there is hardly any attachment under PMLA that the Adjudicating Authority has refused to confirm so far.
Notably, properties in foreign locations can be attached after a Letter Rogatory is sent through a competent court to the concerned country. The relevant authority in that country then attaches the property.
After the confirmation
The accused has the right to challenge the Adjudicating Authority's confirmation order at the PMLA's Appellate Tribunal within 45 days. If the Appellate Tribunal too confirms the order, the accused can file a plea in the High Court, and so on. Unless the property is released along the way, it shall remain out of bounds for the owner until the trial is completed. Following final confirmation, in case of a residential property, the ED will ask the owner to vacate the premises along with his belongings, and will take over possession.
In case of a conviction, the trial court may order confiscation of the attached property, and vest the rights to the property with the central government.
Sitting and decaying
Attached properties may remain locked for years, and start crumbling. There is a provision for a body to maintain such properties, but it has not been set up yet. Attached vehicles are sent to warehouses owned by the Central Warehousing Corporation, where the ED pays to park the vehicle. As cases drag on for years, the vehicles rot. At the end of the trial, neither the accused nor the ED recovers anything from the vehicle. The agency could, in fact, end up paying more rent than the value of the vehicle.