MUMBAI | NEW DELHI: Former liquor baron Vijay Mallya was on Tuesday arrested by the British police in London in connection with a money laundering case. Since it was procedural, he was released on bail within minutes by a London court.
This is the second such instance in 2017 for Mallya who was arrested and released by the British police on April 18.
Indian investigative agencies, including the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate (ED), recently submitted evidence to Britain’s Crown Prosecution Service alleging that Mallya had diverted Rs 6,000 crore — borrowed from banks — to tax havens. Mallya has rejected the charges as a “joke” and said that he was getting used to “witch-hunts”.
His arrest on charges of money laundering case is being viewed as a shot in the arm for the Indian authorities. “This will strengthen our case of extradition. The formal arrest (of Mallya) underlines the fact that the British authorities have found force in the evidence produced by us,” a senior government functionary said requesting anonymity.
India has been pressing its case on extraditing Mallya, who’s accused of money laundering by Indian investigative agencies and sought by banks and courts for defaults worth Rs 9,000 crore. An email sent to Mallya on the issue went unanswered.
“Today’s arrest and bail is no different from what happened earlier and is merely a formality,” MZM Legal’s Zulfiquar Memon, who is in the UK, said. “Today’s process seemed like the registration of a new money laundering case brought in the UK against Mallya by the ED. Both CBI and ED will now file their chargesheets as evidence before the Westminster Magistrate Court, where Mallya will be tried for extradition.”
Mallya fled to Britain in March 2016. Officials from the investigative agencies said they are filing a fresh prosecution complaint and have issued letters rogatory to seven countries to establish the alleged diversion of funds to shell companies. The fresh money-laundering case involves the loan of about Rs 6,027 crore from over a dozen banks led by SBI taken between 2005 and 2010 by the Mallya-owned KingfisherBSE Airlines.
The loan amount along with interest now stands at over Rs 9,000 crore and a first information report (FIR) for non-payment and criminal conspiracy was filed last year.
Mallya has been declared a proclaimed offender in the IDBI Bank loan fraud case. In a chargesheet filed in May, investigation agencies said Mallya laundered nearly half the loan taken from IDBI by creating a web of companies and nominating directors in them who were either his personal staff or third parties. The chargesheet further alleged that Mallya holds, directly or indirectly, shares of public listed companies, via a string of shell companies.
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