Vikas Swarup also mentioned that both countries are bound by a bilateral extradition treaty
The noose is finally tightening around liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who is accused of loan defaults and financial irregularities by investigating agencies.
Acting on the Central Bureau of Investigation's (CBI) and Enforcement Directorate's (ED) plea, the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Thursday formally submitted papers for his extradition to the UK High Commission. The papers have been with the ministry's legal department for the past many months.
"We've today handed over the request for extradition of Vijay Mallya as received from the CBI to the UK High Commission in New Delhi. We have requested the UK side to extradite him to face trial in India," said MEA spokesperson Vikas Swarup at a press briefing.
He also mentioned that both countries are bound by a bilateral extradition treaty. "Honouring the request will be seen as an act of cooperation," Swarup added.
Earlier on Thursday, United Breweries removed Mallya from his non-executive chairman role. The UB Group said that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) has barred Mallya from holding key managerial roles in any listed company. Mallya, owner of Kingfisher Airlines, was known for his flamboyant lifestyle.
Mallya fled to the UK in March 2016 after defaulting a loan of Rs 9,000 crore from a consortium of banks. Despite multiple injunctions, he did not appear before the Enforcement Directorate in connection with a probe under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA).
Asserting that India has a "legitimate" case against Mallya, Swarup said that if an extradition request is honoured, it shows the UK's "sensitivity towards our concerns". Last month, a CBI court had issued a non-bailable warrant against Mallya in the Rs 720-crore IDBI Bank loan default case.
The UB Group's decision to distance itself from the baron follows the Karnataka High Court issuing a winding-up order on United Breweries Holdings Ltd (UBHL), the firm through which Mallya controlled his business empire. The court had directed an official liquidator to take over all assets. A spokesman for the British High Commission said that the Commission does not comment on individual cases.
Last month, the CBI filed a charge sheet against fromer IDBI Bank chairman, Kingfisher Airlines, Vijay Mallya and eight others. Those arrested included the then chairman of IDBI Bank Yogesh Aggarwal and former CFO of now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines A Raghunathan. The arrests were followed by searches at 11 places, including Mallya's residence in New Delhi, three floors of UB towers in Bengaluru and residences of Aggarwal and Raghunathan.
The CBI has alleged that Aggarwal approved the loans and instructed to expedite the ratings while finalising loans of over Rs 900 crore to Kingfisher Airlines. The agency has said that the loans were issued by accepting Kingfisher brand, leased aircraft as hypothecation, and guarantees from UB Group and Mallya himself.
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