New Delhi:

Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya on Wednesday said that banks have recovered Rs 14,131.60 crore from him “against the judgement debt of Rs 6,203 crore” but he continues to be “an economic offender”.

He said in a post on X that unless the Enforcement Directorate and banks can legally justify how they have taken more than two times the debt, he is entitled to relief.

“The Debt Recovery Tribunal adjudged the KFA (Kingfisher Airlines) debt at Rs 6,203 crores including Rs 1,200 crores of interest. The FM announced in Parliament that through the ED, Banks have recovered Rs 14,131.60 crores from me against the judgement debt of Rs 6,203 crores and I am still an economic offender. Unless the ED and Banks can legally justify how they have taken more than two times the debt, I am entitled to relief which I will pursue,” Mallya said.

Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman on Tuesday listed several major cases where the Enforcement Diectorate has from time to time attached properties of individuals and companies connected to economic offence cases.

Replying to the debate on Supplementary Demands for Grants – First Batch for 2024-2025, she apprised the Lok Sabha Tuesday evening that the central enforcement agency has successfully restored properties worth around Rs 22,280 crore — only the major cases included.

Of those restored, the complete attached property worth Rs 14,131.6 crores of fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya has been restored to the public sector banks, the minister said.

The Debt Recovery Tribunal adjudged the KFA debt at Rs 6203 crores including Rs 1200 crores of interest. The FM announced in Parliament that through the ED,Banks have recovered Rs 14,131.60 crores from me against the judgement debt of Rs 6203 crores and I am still an economic…

— Vijay Mallya (@TheVijayMallya) December 18, 2024

In the case of Nirav Modi, another fugitive, Rs 1,052.58 crores has been restored to the public and private sector banks.

In National Spot Exchange Ltd (NSEL) scam, Rs 17.47 crores have been obtained and given to the banks, SRS Group worth Rs 20.15 crores, Rose Valley Group worth Rs 19.40 crores, Surya Pharmaceuticals Ltd worth Rs 185.13 crores, Nowhera Sheikh and Others (Heera Group) worth Rs 226 crores, Naidu Amrutesh Reddy and Others worth Rs 12.73 crores.Properties worth Rs 2,565.90 crores have been restored related to Mehul Choksi and others, she said.

Citing these numbers of attached properties and subsequently handing them over to the banks, the Finance Minister said that her government has not left anybody who committed economic offences.

“It is important to recognise that we have not left anybody in economic offences; we are after them. We will ensure that money that has to go to the banks goes back,” she said in Lok Sabha during the reply.

The Union Minister expressed optimism about economic growth, saying that the sluggish figures of second-quarter GDP growth was a “temporary blip.”

New Delhi:

Properties worth Rs 14,131 crore – that once belonged to Vijay Mallya – have been seized and handed to public and private sector banks to pay off a part of the fugitive businessman’s substantial debts, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman told Parliament Tuesday.

Ms Sitharaman told the Lok Sabha the Enforcement Directorate had, in total, restored properties worth Rs 22,280 crore to pay back debts of wanted individuals like Mr Mallya, Mehul Choksi, and Nirav Modi, and that the fight against economic offenders is set to continue.

The restored sum includes Rs 1,052 crore from Mr Modi and Rs 2,565 crore from Mr Choksi. A sum of Rs 17.5 crore in the National Spot Exchange Ltd, or NSEL, case was also restored.

“In money laundering cases, the ED has successfully restored properties valued at Rs 22,280 crore… we have not left anyone. Even if they fled the country, we have gone after them.”

“… it is important to recognise we have not left (out) anybody. We will make sure the money… which has to go back to banks… will go back,” Ms Sitharaman declared.

The Finance Minister’s staunch defence of the federal agency follows question marks last week over its conviction rate; that low figure – less than five per cent over the past five years – provided Congress leader Randeep Surjewala with ammunition to attack the government in Parliament.

In response to a question asked in the House, Mr Surjewala was told the ED had filed over 900 cases under the strict Prevention of Money Laundering Act, or PMLA, from 2019 to 2023.

Of these, only 42, or 4.6 per cent, have resulted in conviction.

This, the Congress leader claimed, was proof of the ruling Bharatiya Janata Party’s “witch hunt” against opposition leaders; the opposition has routinely accused the BJP of using federal agencies like the ED to file false charges against rival parties and politicians to silence them.

The low conviction rate was also flagged by the Supreme Court in August; the top court reprimanded the ED, saying, “You (the agency) needs to look at the quality of prosecution.”

Meanwhile, with regard to tracking down and bringing back ‘black money’, or funds illegally acquired and parked abroad, Ms Sitharaman said the Black Money Act (2015) has had a positive impact on taxpayers and Indian citizens disclosing foreign assets. She said the number of taxpayers disclosing such had gone up to two lakh in 2024/25, from 60,467 in 2021/22.

And, under that law, as of June this year, nearly 700 cases had been filed – and 163 prosecutions initiated – to bring back over Rs 17,000 crore. This, the Finance Minister, said, includes investigations into widely publicised cases like the Panama, Paradise, and Pandora leaks.

A multi-agency group is conducting a detailed investigation into these cases, she said.

Ms Sitharaman’s answers in Parliament this week also follow a sit-down last month between Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his British counterpart, Keir Starmer, on the sidelines of the G20 Summit in Brazil. Mr Modi urged Mr Starmer to expedite the extradition of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi. India is also trying to extradite Sanjay Bhandari, an accused in illegal arms deals.

Vijay Mallya is the primary accused in a bank loan default case and fled India in 2016, while Nirav Modi is wanted by Indian authorities for defrauding the Punjab National Bank.

With input from agencies

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Mumbai:

 A special court in Mumbai has issued a non-bailable warrant (NBW) against fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya in a Rs 180-crore loan default case linked to Indian Overseas Bank (IOB).

The NBW was issued against Mallya on June 29 by special CBI court judge SP Naik Nimbalkar and a detailed order was made available on Monday.

Citing other non-bailable warrants issued against the 68-year-old businessman after taking into account CBI submission, and his status as a “fugitive”, the court noted, “this is a fit case to issue an open-ended NBW against him to secure his presence”.

The CBI, probing the case, has claimed the promoter of the now defunct Kingfisher Airlines caused a wrongful loss of more than Rs 180 crore to the government-run bank by “wilfully” defaulting in payments.

The embattled liquor tycoon, who has already been declared a fugitive economic offender in a money laundering case probed by the Enforcement Directorate(ED), currently resides in London and the Indian government is seeking his extradition.

The warrant was related to a cheating case registered by the CBI for alleged diversion of loans availed by the then-operational Kingfisher Airlines from IOB between 2007 and 2012.

As per a chargesheet filed in the case in the court recently by the central agency, these credit facilities were issued to the grounded private carrier by the bank under an agreement.

The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had in August 2010 directed the complainant bank (in the case) State Bank of India (SBI) to consider the proposal of Kingfisher Airlines Ltd (KAL) for restructuring of existing facilities by relaxing the concerned guidelines as a one-time measure for the aviation sector, the probe agency said in the document.

Accordingly, the lenders, including IOB, restructured the existing credit facilities to KAL through a Master Debt Recast Agreement (MDRA). The agreement was signed between the KAL and a consortium of 18 banks.

The allegations in the case pertain to false promises, diversion of loans for the purposes other than it was availed, the CBI said.

The accused dishonestly and with intent to cheat, “wilfully” defaulted on the repayment obligations under the aforesaid loans and caused a wrongful loss of Rs 141.91 crore on the account of default on loans, the chargesheet claimed.

The probe agency further alleged that an additional wrongful loss of Rs 38.30 crores was caused on the account conversion of loans to shares.

Taking cognizance of the charge-sheet, the CBI court issued process (summons) against Mallya and five other accused in the case.

However, the probe agency pressed for issuance of an NBW against Mallya, saying “the accused is a fugitive and an absconder”.

Citing multiple cases where NBWs and summonses have been issued against the embattled businessman, the CBI’s plea said he is presently living in England and “continues to subvert the process of law in India.” Considering the CBI submission, the court said Mallya has absconded, declared a fugitive and NBWs are pending for execution against him in other cases. So no purpose will be served by issuing process (summons) to him.

“This is a fit case to issue an open-ended NBW against accused Mallya for securing his presence,” it observed.

The former Rajya Sabha MP was declared a Fugitive Economic Offender in January 2019 by a special court for cases under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).

Mallya, accused of defaulting on multiple loan repayments and money laundering, left India in March 2016.

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)

New Delhi:

Punjab Police have registered a First Information Report (FIR) against a YouTube channel for allegedly equating Aam Aadmi Party (AAP) MP Raghav Chadha with fugitive Vijay Mallya.

The FIR against the YouTube channel ‘Capital TV’ was filed on the complaint of Vikas Prashar, son of AAP candidate from the Ludhiana Lok Sabha seat, Ashok Pappi Prashar. The complainant accused the channel of using defamatory and “misleading content.”

“The statements/contents of false videos on Capital TV channel and others shall harm the public peace and harmony…and is likely to promote enmity between different groups in the country on grounds of religion, caste, race and community,” reads the complaint.

As per the FIR, the channel made claims that “Vijay Mallya fled to the UK after taking public money, and similarly, a Rajya Sabha member left for England, claiming it was for eye treatment.”

(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)