It is possible that the companies are being closed by Vadra in order not to disclose his worth.
The son-in-law of the Congress party is in dock again.
A Hindustan Times report has claimed that Robert Vadra, husband of Priyanka Vadra and brother-in-law of Rahul Gandhi, is shutting down his six companies, quietly. These two companies never filed annual returns in the two years of their existence.
HT further claims that the balance sheets of the company are non-existant.
These companies – Lifeline Agrotech, Greenwave Agro, Rightline Agriculture, Future Infra Agro, Best Seasons Agro and Prime Time Agro – are all private limited companies established between June and August 2012, according to HT, purportedly as agriculture or agro-processing firms.
All six companies are now listed by the ministry of corporate affairs as “having status under the process of being struck off”. When that process is complete they will legally cease to exist.
The report says that Vadra is named as managing director and promoter in company records. Amit Mehta, who is a director of joint venture companies formed by Vadra and the real-estate giant DLF, is said to be listed as the director and promoter of these companies. Mehta was a part of the Vadra-DLF land controversy.
‘Controversy’ is not a new word for Vadra.
He has been courting controversy from the time he started dating Priyanka.
Five years into marriage with Priyanka and Vadra severed all his ties with his family issuing a notice that he had nothing to do with them. Robert’s public notice published in a leading national daily on January 3, 2002, was drafted by Arun Bhardwaj, son of former law minister Hansraj Bhardwaj (the current governor of Karnataka).
It read: “It has been brought to the notice of my client that some persons including Rajindra Vadra (Robert’s father) resident of C-7, Amar Colony and Richard Vadra, resident of Basant Vihar Colony, Civil Lines, Moradabad, UP are misrepresenting to the public that they are working on behalf of my client and allegedly promising jobs and other favours in return for money. Even though Rajindra Vadra and Richard Vadra are relatives of my client but they have no access to my client. Public at large is hereby put to notice that my client has not authorized Rajindra Vadra and Richard Vadra and anyone else to work for him or to use his name in any manner and make such misrepresentation to anybody. Such misrepresentations are without the knowledge and consent of my client.”
Even mother-in-law Sonia Gandhi had gone public cautioning everybody to not deal in any way with ‘relatives’ of Vadra. It is also called an attempt to destroy the staunch RSS supporter Vadra family which was against the marriage by some people including Vadra’s father.
Vadra’s family members died un-natural deaths one by one. There was no enquiry and no case. The matter was hushed up quickly.
The worth of this tenth pass son-in-law is not known. And filing returns is not his habit it seems. According to a report in DNA, Vadra, “since March 2011 stopped filing mandatory annual returns or financial statements with the ministry of corporate affairs of all the 13 companies he owns”. It should be noted that the ‘dubious land deals’ controversy had started at that time only.
In the same report, DNA had talked about the six companies being shut down by Vadra now and pretty much running at that time. The report had said: “In the case of the remaining six companies, Vadra incorporated them in a span of three months (July to August 2012) and did not submit information about their financial deals. All six companies have some ‘Agro’ link and have most probably been raised to buy rural land.”
It was expected that the ministry of corporate affairs would take action against him which ranged from a minimum fine of Rs 50,000 or Rs 5,000 per day till the financial statement is filed. It is possible that the companies are being closed by Vadra in order not to disclose his worth.
Vadra’s movements and activities are unknown too. He is entitled to SPG security cover and is not frisked at airports. The Bhartiya Janata Party, before coming to power, had targeted Vadra on various issues.
The time has come that Vadra is caught and put behind bars.
