After former Union Minister Farooq Abdullah, it is now the turn of former Prime Minister and JDs supremo HD Devegowda to come to the defence of liquor baron Vijay Mallya who is now said to be in london.
Addressing a Press conference in Bengaluru on Saturday Devegowda, whose party JD(S) was responsible for getting Mallya elected to Rajyasabha in 2010 played an emotional card and said “Mallya is son of Karnataka. He is not running away”. Gowda who came to Mallya’s defence said “”These days every airlines are facing the losses, so no need to target a person who is a global business man.”
Farooq Abdulla on Friday had said that there was no need to arrest the business tycoon as he was a “gentleman” and would return to India on his own. “Vijay Mallya will come home. I don’t think Government needs to arrest him. He will come and answer. He is a gentleman”, Abdullah said. It is quite interesting Devegowda and many netas supporting king of bad times Vijay Mallya who has violated all laws regarding loans to many PSU banks.
Raising objection to Mallya being termed as an absconder, Gowda said, the Enforcement Directorate has issued summons to Mallya and he has already replied to those. The ED on Friday issued summons for appearance to the former liquor baron and questioned some former Kingfisher airlines executives while his “fleeing” from India triggered a spat in Parliament.
Mallya, who is facing legal proceedings for alleged loan defaults by his group to the tune of over `9,000 crore, said he will comply with the law of the land. “I am an international businessman. I travel to and from India frequently. I did not flee from India and neither am I an absconder. Rubbish,” Mallya, who is believed to be in the UK, tweeted from an undisclosed location.
It was in 2002 when SM Krishna was the chief minister Mallya got elected to Rajya Sabha from Karnataka and in 2010 when BS Yeddyurappa was the Chief Minister.
The Congress and JDS elected him in his first term while BJP and JDS combined elected him in 2012. Mallya’s current term in Rajyasabha ends in July 2016.