A British court on Monday ordered that a luxury yacht owned by Force India Limited be sold and its proceeds be used to pay back Qatar National Bank to enforce its mortgage on the vessel.
During court proceedings, brought by the bank in the Admiralty Division of the High Court in England, it had been claimed that liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya’s son Siddharth Mallya was the ultimate beneficial owner of the yacht.
However, the bank said that without grappling with that issue, their claim was focused on recovering outstanding loan payments estimated at around Euro 6 million.
“Security for the loan… included a personal guarantee from Dr Mallya, an individual closely connected with the borrower,” notes the judgment handed down by Justice Nigel Teare in London on Monday.
“The sum claimed in this action in rem is Euro 5 million plus interest and the costs of ‘collection’ which the claimant is entitled to recover,” it adds.
The judgment also takes note of the fact that the Defendant, listed as “the owner of the yacht Force India”, chose not to appear at a scheduled trial earlier this month after its solicitors “came off the record” in November last.