Robert Vadra is facing a probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act
Businessman Robert Vadra, accused in a money laundering case, has been allowed by a Delhi court to travel abroad. Mr Vadra, the son-in-law of interim Congress president Sonia Gandhi, had sought permission to travel to Barcelona in Spain from September 21 to October 8 for business.
On Thursday, the Enforcement Directorate had told the court that letting Mr Vadra travel to Spain and other European countries would hamper investigations. The agency told the court that the accused may try to influence witnesses and destroy evidence in the case.
Mr Vadra, 50, is being investigated under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
The case, being probed by the Enforcement Directorate, involves the purchase of a London-based property. The agency has questioned Mr Vadra over a dozen times so far.
Investigators claim that Robert Vadra, directly or indirectly, owns nine properties in London cumulatively worth around 12 million pounds. Three of these are villas, the rest, luxury flats. All these were purchased between 2005 and 2010, when the UPA government was in power.
The allegations of money laundering involve the purchase of a mansion at 12, Bryanston Square in London, which has an estimated value of 1.9 million pounds. Robert Vadra has also been battling allegations of shadowy land deals in Haryana and Rajasthan.
The businessman has denied allegations of possessing illegal foreign assets, calling it a "political witch hunt".
Robert Vadra was directed on April 1 to not leave the country without permission by the Delhi court which had granted him conditional anticipatory bail.