Congress president Sonia Gandhi and vice-president Rahul Gandhi were granted bail after they appeared in a trial court in Delhi on Saturday for a hearing in the National Herald case.
The two were summoned by the court for the case of an alleged illegal acquisition of the Rs 5,000-crore property of the The Associated Journals Limited, which published the paper.
The two were granted bail on a Rs 50,000 personal bond and one surety each. The next date of hearing is 20 February, 2016.
BJP leader Subramanian Swamy had filed the case against the Gandhis and four other Congress leaders in 2012, accusing them of misappropriation of funds and fraudulent transactions to transfer the assets of The Associated Journals Limited to a company in which they owned majority equity.
The Congress has accused the BJP-led government of "political vendetta" after the Delhi High Court refused to stay the summons earlier this month.
Read all the UPDATES below:
3: 51 pm IST: Rahul Gandhi takes the mike. "Modi puts false accusations and thinks people will bow before him. But the Congress party will not bow. We will continue our work for the poor," the Congress vice-president said.
3:48 pm IST: Sonia Gandhi addresses the media. "I appeared before the court like any other law-abiding citizen," she said.
""I have complete faith that the truth will emerge," Gandhi said. "Our fight will continue".
3:45 pm IST: "I told the court that these Congress leaders have a tendency to disappear for 57 days, so I asked the judge to ensure they take permission before leaving the country," Swamy told the media.
3: 44 pm IST: Subrmanian Swamy says he will win the case in 2016.
3:31 pm IST: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra took surety for Rahul Gandhi and AK Antony took surety for Sonia Gandhi.
3:09 pm IST: "We moved a bail application and the judge granted bail, without any conditions. There were demands that they should be not allowed to leave the country. The judge did not heed to the demand. The next date of hearing is 20 February, 2016," Kapil Sibal said.
3:08 pm IST: Rahul Gandhi and Sonia Gandhi walk out of the court minutes after the hearing began.
3:04 pm IST: Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi have been granted bail. The bail was granted on a Rs 50,000 personal bond and one surety each, ANI news agency reported.
2:59 pm IST: The hearing begins. Kapil Sibal has begun his arguments for the Congress leaders.
2:52 pm IST: The hearing on the National Herald case is set to begin in a few minutes.
2:43 pm IST: Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi arrive at Patiala House Court.
2:33 pm IST: Priyanka Gandhi Vadra has reached the court.
2:22 pm IST: Sonia Gandhi's daughter Priyanka Vadra and son-in-law Robert Vadra will reportedly be present for the hearing. Also present will be former Prime Minister Manmohan Singh.
2:20 pm IST: Subramanian Swamy, the complainant in the case, has reached the court.
2:15 pm IST: Congress workers held protests in several parts of the country on Saturday ahead of the hearing.
2: 15 pm IST: Sonia Gandhi and Rahul Gandhi will appear in court in less than an hour.
