Beleaguered liquor baron Vijay Mallya arrested in London

Beleaguered businessman Vijay Mallya has been arrested in London by the UK Police under the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty, a development that has been confirmed by the Central Bureau of Investigation. 

Mallya who fled to London on March 2, 2016, after Indian investigative agencies and courts started closing in on him, has been allegedly arrested now. 

He will be produced in the Metropolitan Court on Tuesday. Mallya has avoided several summon notices from Indian courts. 

Mallya owes the consortium of 17 lenders of Kingfisher Airlines over Rs 6,000 crore. 

Acting on the 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, according to PTI. 

"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.