Fugitive business tycoon Vijay Mallya has apparently expressed his willingness to return to India to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) after it recently invoked the Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance (FEOO) against him, under which the agency can confiscate his assets worth ₹12,500 crores both in India and abroad.
The development also comes just days before judgment for Mallaya’s extradition trail in London is announced, in which he will be facing charges of fraud and money laundering worth ₹9,000 crore for his collapsed Kingfisher Airlines. If extradited, Mallaya will be sent back to India, and will be arrested immediately on arrival.
In June, the ED had presented an application before a special court in Mumbai, the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court, and sought to declare Mallaya as a fugitive economic offender. By doing so, the ED will then have the right to confiscate Mallaya’s assets in case he doesn’t show up by the date specified, which has been set to August 27 2018.
Mallaya has recently said that he has become the “poster boy of bank default” and a “lightning rod for public anger” in the country. In June, he also released letters which were written in 2016, which he had sent to the Prime Minister and Finance Minister trying to explain his side of the story, while also offering to settle his ₹10,000 crore debt with the banks.
In the same month, he also tweeted the following: “CBI and ED charge sheets specifically allege criminality with no intention to repay Banks. Since 2016 I have been making efforts to settle. Now I have placed everything before the Hon’Ble Karnataka HC so where is the malafide? Are Banks interested in repayment ?”
CBI and ED charge sheets specifically allege criminality with no intention to repay Banks. Since 2016 I have been making efforts to settle. Now I have placed everything before the Hon’Ble Karnataka HC so where is the malafide ? Are Banks interested in repayment ?
— Vijay Mallya (@TheVijayMallya) June 26, 2018
Mallaya had fled to the UK in March 2016 holding a diplomatic passport. In April 2017, he was arrested in Scotland Yard, UK on an extradition warrant, but was released on a bail of 650,000 pounds (₹5.3 crores), and is now facing extradition proceedings in London.