New Delhi, Mar 19 (IANS): The Delhi High Court on Monday directed Young Indian Pvt Ltd (YI), whose major stakeholders are Congress President Rahul Gandhi and his mother Sonia Gandhi, to deposit Rs 10 crore in the Rs 249.15 crore income tax proceedings against the firm.

A bench of Justices S. Ravindra Bhat and A.K. Chawla asked the company to deposit half the amount with the Income Tax Department before March 31 and the remaining by April 15.

The High Court directed the IT Department not to enforce the demand of Rs 249.15 crore. The court listed the matter for April 24 for further hearing seeking response from IT Department on the plea.

The company requested the court to stay the recovery of tax and interest of Rs 249.15 crore raised in pursuance to a December 27 notice issued under section 156 of the IT Act for the assessment year 2011-12.

The company submitted that it is a charitable firm and does not have any income and the Income Tax authorities have wrongly raised a demand of Rs 249 crore for the assessment year 2011-12.

Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP) leader Subramanian Swamy had filed a complaint about "cheating" in the acquisition of Associated Journals Limited (AJL), which published the National Herald newspaper, by Young Indian, "a firm in which Sonia and Rahul Gandhi each own a 38 per cent stake".

Swamy had accused them of allegedly conspiring to cheat and misappropriate funds by just paying Rs 50 lakh, by which Young Indian Pvt Ltd obtained the right to recover Rs 90.25 crore which AJL owed to the Congress.

Former Congress President Sonia Gandhi and her son Rahul Gandhi, party leaders Motilal Vora, Oscar Fernandes, Suman Dubey, Sam Pitroda and Young Indian are accused in the case.