Sonia Gandhi's assets: Rs 1.38 crore, house in Italy

06-04-09 Congress President Sonia Gandhi owns neither a car nor a house in India but she has an ancestral home in Italy, according to papers she submitted on Monday while filing her Lok Sabha nomination.

She submitted an affidavit to the district magistrate, stating the Italian house was valued at Rs18.02 lakh.

Sonia Gandhi's assets, according to the affidavit, totalled Rs1.38 crore, nearly Rs1 crore less than what her son Rahul Gandhi reportedly has. He is contesting from nearby Amethi constituency.

Sonia Gandhi's affidavit says that she had Rs75,000 in cash and Rs 28.61 lakh in bank deposits.

In addition she had mutual funds worth about Rs 20 lakh and Rs12 lakh in Reserve Bank of India bonds.

A sum of Rs.199,000 was deposited in post offices and Rs 24.88 lakh with the Public Provident Fund.

Sonia Gandhi's jewellery, weighing about 2.5 kg, was valued at Rs11 lakh while 88 kg of silver possessed by her was stated to be worth about Rs18 lakh.

She owns two plots of agricultural land totalling up to about 15 bighas and valued at Rs.219,000. Their location is not mentioned in the affidavit.

Sonia Gandhi paid Rs.558,000 in income tax for the assessment year 2008-09 and Rs 32,512 in wealth tax.

In the section related to educational qualification, Sonia Gandhi mentions two courses: a three-year course in foreign languages (English and French) from an institute in Turin (Italy) and a Certificate in English Language from Lennox Cook School, Cambridge.

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