Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who has been declared a proclaimed offender, was on Tuesday arrested in london by Scotland Yard on India’s request for his extradition on fraud charges. He was freed on a bail bond worth 6,50,000 pounds and will next appear at Westminster Magistrates’ Court on May 17. He appeared at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in london and was seen walking out with his legal team a few hours later after being granted bail.
“Officers from the Metropolitan Police’s Extradition Unit this morning arrested a man on an extradition warrant. Vijay Mallya was arrested on behalf of the Indian authorities in relation to accusations of fraud,” Scotland Yard said.
In New Delhi, senior officials described Mallya’s arrest as the first salvo in the case, which will now involve a legal process in the UK to determine if Mallya can be extradited to India to face charges in Indian courts. The arrest comes weeks after Finance Minister Arun Jaitley had indicated that Mallya’s extradition would feature in his talks during his visit to the UK.
Sources said the CBI and the Indian High Commission in london will present India’s case in the UK court for extradition of Mallya. Senior officials of Ministry of Home Affairs said soon team comprising External Affairs Ministry, CBI and ED officers would visit london to co-ordinate with the Indian High Commission.
Union law Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad said India had put up a strong case against Mallya and ED is also preparing strategy to present the case for his extradition under the UN convention of prevention of money laundering, of which the UK is also a signatory.
Meanwhile, the External Affairs Ministry said that Mallya’s arrest in london on Tuesday was in connection with the request by the Government to UK authorities for his extradition. “legal process in this regard is underway in the UK. The two Governments are in touch in this context,” MEA spokesperson Gopal Baglay said.
The flamboyant businessman, whose now-defunct “The King of Good Times” Kingfisher Airlines owes more than Rs9,000 crore to various banks, had fled India on March 2, 2016. later Mallya tweeted his own reaction to the day’s proceedings, saying: “Usual Indian media hype. Extradition hearing in court started today as expected.”
Minister of State for Finance Santosh Kumar Gangwar said, “We are now assessing the facts how we can bring him back into the country and start judicial proceedings against him.” The Government, he said, will leave no stone unturned to bring to justice anyone indulging in financial irregularities.
Earlier in January this year, a CBI court had issued a non-bailable warrant against Mallya in the Rs720-crore IDBI Bank loan default case.
The UK Home Office declined to comment on “individual cases” but said that Mallya’s case will be handled under Part 2 of the UK’s Extradition Act 2003.
The long-drawn procedure begins with an arrest, following which an extradition hearing is held before the District Judge at Westminster Magistrates’ Court. The judge must decide whether any of the statutory bars in the Act apply in the case, including health and human rights grounds.
“If none of these bars apply in the case, the Judge will send the extradition request to the Secretary of State for approval,” the Home Office said.
last month, setting in motion the process of extradition of Mallya, the British Government had certified India’s request and sent it to a district judge for further action.