New Delhi (TIP)- Prime Minister Narendra Modi sought “strong action against anti-India elements” in the UK and progress in the return of economic offenders who have taken refuge in Britain, during a phone conversation with his British counterpart Rishi Sunak on Thursday, April 13.
The two leaders also agreed on the need to speedily conclude a free trade agreement (FTA) between both countries, according to an Indian readout of the conversation, which came against the backdrop of anger in New Delhi over the activities of pro-Khalistan groups in Britain.
Sunak and Modi reviewed progress in several bilateral issues that are part of the India-UK Roadmap 2030 and expressed satisfaction at recent high-level exchanges and growing cooperation, especially in the trade and economic sectors, the readout said.
Modi “raised the issue of security of Indian diplomatic establishments in the UK and called for strong action against anti-India elements by the UK government”, according to the readout.
Sunak reiterated his condemnation of the “unacceptable violence” outside the Indian mission in London and “stressed that extremism had no place in the UK”, according to a statement from the UK Prime Minister’s Office.
Sunak updated Modi on steps being taken to ensure the security of Indian high commission staff.
The Indian readout said Modi raised the “issue of economic offenders who have sought refuge in the UK” and “sought progress on the return of these fugitives so that they can appear before the Indian judicial system”.
The readout didn’t provide details on the offenders. The list of high-profile fugitives in the UK wanted by Indian authorities, whose current location are known and against whom extradition proceedings are either completed or are at an advanced stage, includes former liquor baron Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Sanjay Bhandari, Iqbal Mirchi’s wife Hajra Memon and their sons Asiq Iqbal Memon and Junaid Iqbal Memon. Modi and Sunak further “agreed on the need for early conclusion of a mutually beneficial Free Trade Agreement between the two countries”, according to the readout.
Source: HT
Tag: Vijay Mallya
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Modi speaks to Sunak, raises embassy attack
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SC asks Vijay Mallya’s children to repay $40 mn ‘gift deeds’
New Delhi (TIP)- The Supreme Court’s verdict in the contempt case against fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya also directs his three children to return a total of USD 40 million which were transferred to them through trusts in 2016. The apex court has termed the transactions “void and inoperative”.
The question that may be asked after this verdict is how the order would be implemented and whether assets belonging to children can be used for repayment of loans.
In its 2017 judgment, the Supreme Court held Vijay Mallya guilty of contempt of court. The court had noted that Mallya violated the 2013 orders of the Karnataka High Court barring him from “transferring, alienating, disposing or creating third party rights in respect of movable as well as immovable properties belonging to them until further order in these petitions”.
The Supreme Court had also noted that Mallya failed to give full details of all assets, accounts, and funds owned by him, despite orders from the top court. The bank account in the Edmund de Rothschild Suisse Bank in Switzerland, where USD 40 million were received in 2016 from Diagio Plc, was not disclosed, the court had said.
The USD 40 million were then transferred into three trusts, created through gift deeds, in the name of each of Mallya’s three children. Mallya’s lawyers had argued that the funds are no longer in his possession since he has no control over the trusts. It is in this scenario that the Supreme Court has held that the transaction of receiving the money, and the creation of trusts in the name of Mallya’s three children — Sidhartha , Leena and Teena Mallya — were “void”. The three children as “beneficiaries” of the illegal transaction have been directed to repay the money to the loan recovery officer of the banking consortium. The court has also directed that if the amount is not repaid in four weeks, the recovery officer can take other steps including the appointment of a forensic auditor to trace the money and assets belonging to the Mallyas so that further debt recovery proceedings, such as asset seizure, can be conducted. The court has passed the order to allow Mallya to “purge the contempt” and “reverse the contumacious transaction”. However, legally, the issue is a complicated one and the verdict could be difficult to enforce.
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SC reserves verdict on Vijay Mallya sentencing
New Delhi (TIP)- The Supreme Court on Thursday reserved its verdict on the quantum of sentence to be awarded to fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya in a contempt case. Mallya, an accused in a bank loan default case of over Rs 9,000 crore involving his now defunct Kingfisher Airlines, has been in the UK since March 2016. He is on bail on an extradition warrant executed by Scotland Yard in April 2017. He was held guilty of contempt of court in 2017 and the matter has been getting deferred as the top court wanted to hear him on the punishment to be awarded to him.
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SC gives final opportunity to Vijay Mallya to appear before it in contempt case
New Delhi (TIP)-The Supreme Court on Thursday, Feb 11, gave a final opportunity to fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya, accused in bank loan default case of over Rs 9,000 crore involving his defunct Kingfisher Airlines, to appear before it personally or through his lawyer in a contempt case where he has been found guilty.
The top court said it has given multiple opportunities to Mallya to appear either personally or through a lawyer and had even given specific directions in its last order dated November 30, 2021.
A bench of justices U U Lalit, S Ravindra Bhat and P S Narasimha posted the contempt case for further hearing after two weeks, saying that respondent contemnor (Mallya) is at liberty to act as per direction given in order dated November 30 last year, failing which the matter shall be taken to its “logical conclusion”.
At the outset, the bench told senior advocate Jaideep Gupta, who has been appointed amicus curiae in the matter, that it has found the contemnor guilty of contempt of court, and now, punishment has to be imposed.
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Mallya can be evicted from London home over unpaid loan, UK court orders
London (TIP): Embattled businessman Vijay Mallya on Tuesday lost a legal battle to hold on to his plush London home after a British court refused to grant him a stay of enforcement in a long-running dispute with Swiss bank UBS. The 18/19 Cornwall Terrace luxury apartment overlooking Regent’s Park in London, described in court as an “extraordinarily valuable property worth many tens of millions of pounds”, is currently being occupied by Mallya’s 95-year-old mother Lalitha. Delivering his judgment virtually for the Chancery Division of the High Court, Deputy Master Matthew Marsh concluded there were no grounds for him to grant further time for the Mallya family to repay a GBP 20.4-million loan to UBS – the claimant in the case. “The claimant’s position was a reasonable one… further time is not likely to make any material difference,” Deputy Master Marsh ruled. “I would also add from my review of the correspondence, I can see no basis whatever for the suggestion that has been made that the claimant has misled the first defendant [Vijay Mallya]… in conclusion, I dismiss the first defendant’s application,” he said.
The judge also declined permission to appeal against his order or to grant a temporary stay of enforcement, which means UBS can proceed with the possession process to realise its unpaid dues. “I will refuse permission to appeal and therefore it follows that I will not be granting a stay,” said Marsh. Mallya’s barrister, Daniel Margolin QC, indicated that the 65-year-old businessman plans to pursue an appeal before a High Court Chancery Division Judge as it has “serious consequences” for his clients, including Mallya’s elderly mother who currently resides at the address. (PTI)
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Banks can sell Mallya’s properties, shares worth Rs 5,646 cr to recover dues
New Delhi (TIP): Armed with court order, a consortium of lenders led by SBI can now sell certain real estate properties and securities belonging to fugitive Vijay Mallya to recover loans turned bad with failure of Kingfisher Airlines.
A consortium of 11 banks that gave Mallya loans, led by State Bank of India (SBI), had approached a special Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court seeking restoration of his properties seized by the Enforcement Directorate.
The special PMLA court in Mumbai on Tuesday allowed the restoration of properties worth Rs 5,646.54 crore to banks.
According to an official of lead bank SBI, symbolic possession of properties mentioned in the order would be taken by lenders after following due legal process.
Recovery process in banks are guided by Securitisation and Reconstruction of Financial Assets and Enforcement of Security Interest (SARFAESI) Act, 2002, the official said, adding that auction or sale of those properties would be done as per the guidelines in due course of time.
SBI has the highest exposure of Rs 1,600 crore out of original loan of Rs 6,900 crore to the defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
Other banks that have exposure to the airline include Punjab National Bank (Rs 800 crore) and IDBI Bank (Rs 800 crore), Bank of India (Rs 650 crore), Bank of Baroda (Rs 550 crore), Central Bank of India (Rs 410 crore).
Mallya is accused of fraud and money laundering allegedly amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore, which involved his defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
Last year, Mallya offered to pay back 100 per cent of “public money” to various Indian banks and urged the government to accept his offer, days ahead of a UK court’s decision on his plea not to extradite him to India.
The 65-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss has been on bail in the UK on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April 2019.
Mallya’s extradition was ordered by former Britain Home Secretary Sajid Javid, in February 2019, after a prima facie case of fraud and money laundering was upheld by the UK courts, including on appeals. He remains on bail in Britain while a confidential legal matter, believed to be related to an asylum application, is resolved.
Noting that banks have suffered losses, the PMLA Court on Tuesday said it was impossible to conclude the exact “quantifiable loss” at this stage.
The court, however, said that the banks’ claim of losses of over Rs 6,200 crore was not “imaginary”.
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Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi coming back to face law, says Sitharaman
Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman said that fugitive businessmen Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi are “coming back” to India to face the law. The government is pursuing extradition of Vijay Mallya and Nirav Modi from the UK while Mehul Choksi is believed to be in Antigua and Barbuda. “Vijay Mallya, Nirav Modi, Mehul Choksi all of them are coming back to face the law of this land…One after other everybody is coming back to this country to face the law of this country,” Ms Sitharaman said while responding to a discussion on Insurance (Amendment) Bill, 2021 in Rajya Sabha. Vijay Mallya, an accused in bank loan default case of over Rs 9,000 crore involving his defunct Kingfisher Airlines, is in the UK since March 2016. He is on bail on an extradition warrant executed three years ago by Scotland Yard on April 18, 2017. Nirav Modi and Mehul Choksi, are accused in a scam involving fake guarantees in the name of state-run PNB to secure overseas loans. Both fled India in 2018, before the CBI began probe. Last month, Nirav Modi, the diamond merchant wanted on charges of fraud and money laundering in the estimated $2-billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) scam case, had lost his legal battle against extradition as a UK judge ruled that he does have a case to answer before the Indian courts.