National Herald scandal: A legacy of warnings ignored and a dynasty under scrutiny

New Delhi: The National Herald case, an alleged fraud that has simmered beneath India’s political surface for decades, has erupted into a full-blown scandal, casting a harsh spotlight on the Gandhi family, Sonia and Rahul Gandhi in particular. 

The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has levelled serious accusations, alleging that the Gandhis orchestrated a sophisticated scheme to divert assets worth Rs 5,000 crore through dubious financial maneuvers. For the Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP), this is not merely a case of financial misconduct but a glaring testament to the Congress party’s entrenched culture of corruption, dynastic entitlement, and abuse of power. 

What makes this saga particularly poignant is its historical roots, tracing back to 1950 when Sardar Vallabhbhai Patel, India’s Iron Man, issued stark warnings about the very practices that appear to have culminated in today’s allegations.

The origins of the National Herald controversy lie in the early post-Independence era, when the newspaper, founded by Jawaharlal Nehru in 1938 as a mouthpiece for the Indian National Congress, became entangled in questionable financial dealings. 

Sardar Patel, a towering figure in India’s freedom struggle and its first Deputy Prime Minister, was among the first to raise concerns. 

In a series of letters exchanged with Nehru in May 1950, documented in Sardar Patel’s Correspondence, Patel expressed alarm over the National Herald’s fundraising activities. He cautioned Nehru against the misuse of government influence to secure funds from questionable sources, warning that such practices could erode public trust and set a dangerous precedent.

On May 5, 1950, Patel wrote to Nehru, highlighting a Rs 75,000 donation to the Herald from individuals linked to Himalayan Airways, a company that had secured a government contract despite objections from the Indian Air Force. 

Patel’s concerns were not abstract; he pointed out that one donor, Akhani, was implicated in bank fraud, and alleged that Union Minister Ahmed Kidwai was soliciting funds from controversial businessmen, including J.P. Srivastava in Lucknow. Patel saw these transactions as early signs of political favoritism, where influence was traded for financial gain.

Nehru’s response was evasive. In a same-day reply, he claimed ignorance of the Herald’s financial dealings and promised to have his son-in-law, Feroze Gandhi, then the newspaper’s General Manager, investigate.

Historians have described Nehru’s tone as dismissive, offering vague reassurances without addressing Patel’s concerns head-on. Unconvinced, Patel wrote again on May 6, emphasising that the donations lacked any charitable intent and were tied to private companies with ulterior motives. He bluntly stated, “There is no element of charity in them,” underscoring the ethical lapse at play.

Nehru’s subsequent reply doubled down on his detachment, claiming he had not been involved with the Herald’s finances for three years and had delegated oversight to an associate named Mridula. While acknowledging that “some mistakes may have occurred,” Nehru framed the issue as a matter of business “loss and profit,” sidestepping the deeper questions of accountability and moral responsibility that Patel had raised. 

This exchange, critics argue, laid the groundwork for a culture of unaccountability within the Congress, where warnings from even the most respected leaders were ignored.

Fast forward to the present, and Patel’s fears appear to have materialised in the form of the National Herald case. The ED’s chargesheet accuses Sonia and Rahul Gandhi, through their control of Young Indian Ltd., of exploiting legal and financial loopholes to acquire the assets of the now-defunct National Herald. 

What the BJP calls a “multi-crore scam” is, according to the ED, not a case of oversight but a deliberate strategy to enrich the Gandhi family under the guise of corporate restructuring. The allegations suggest that the Gandhis used their political influence to manipulate the newspaper’s assets, a charge that resonates with Patel’s 1950 warnings about the dangers of blending political power with financial gain.

The BJP has seized on this scandal to paint the Congress as a party steeped in dynastic privilege, a narrative bolstered by Dr. Subramanian Swamy, the senior BJP leader and petitioner in the case. 

Swamy has long described the National Herald affair as a “systematic conspiracy” by the Gandhis to siphon off public assets for personal benefit. His crusade, backed by the ED’s findings, aligns with the BJP’s broader critique of the Congress as a family-run enterprise that prioritizes private gain over public welfare. 

By invoking Patel’s prescient warnings, the BJP underscores a stark contrast between the nation-first ethos of India’s founding leaders and the Congress’s alleged descent into self-serving politics.

The Congress, for its part, has dismissed the allegations as a politically motivated vendetta, accusing the BJP of weaponising investigative agencies to target its leaders. However, this defense struggles against the weight of historical evidence and the ED’s detailed chargesheet. 

The National Herald case is not an isolated incident but part of a broader pattern where the Congress has consistently placed loyalty to the Gandhi family above institutional integrity. 

Patel’s letters serve as a haunting reminder that the seeds of this scandal were sown decades ago, when warnings about financial misconduct were ignored in favor of political expediency.

Beyond the legal battle, the National Herald case has become a moral reckoning for the Congress. It raises uncomfortable questions about the party’s legacy and its claim to moral authority as the architect of modern India. 

The BJP’s narrative that the Congress has betrayed the ideals of its own founding fathers gains traction with every new revelation in the case. Patel, a symbol of discipline and integrity, emerges as a prophetic figure whose warnings about the dangers of unchecked power resonate even today.

For the Gandhis, the stakes could not be higher. 

The ED’s investigation threatens not only legal consequences but also the family’s carefully curated image as stewards of India’s democratic values. 

As the case unfolds, it serves as a cautionary tale about the perils of dynastic politics, where privilege can blind leaders to the principles they claim to uphold. 

The National Herald scandal is more than a financial controversy; it is a window into the erosion of institutional ethics and a reminder that even the most revered political legacies are not immune to scrutiny.

In invoking Sardar Patel, the BJP does more than highlight a historical irony. It challenges the Congress to confront its own history. 

The National Herald case, with its roots in a warning issued 75 years ago, underscores a timeless truth: power without accountability breeds corruption.