Mallya's Social Media Statement
Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya recently took to social media platform X (formerly Twitter) to challenge the perception of him as a "chor" (thief) or "cheat." His statement came in the wake of an order passed by a Division Bench of the Karnataka High Court. Mallya wrote, "Am I still a Chor or Cheat? I lived life Kingsize with my own money and that was my biggest crime for which I am being punished. There is a God above for all of us. Someday Justice will prevail."
Court Observations and Financial Discrepancy
The Karnataka High Court's order, cited by Mallya, references a statement by Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman in the Lok Sabha. According to this, assets worth ₹14,131.6 crore, excluding certain UBL shares, have been restored to a consortium of banks. This amount significantly exceeds the banks' original claim of ₹6,203 crore. The court further noted that the consortium of banks should have no "justification for their claim over the UBL shares."
Despite the substantial recovery, the court also observed that Dr. Vijay Mallya's "flamboyant lifestyle, excessive personal indulgence and his personal vanity are coming in the way of giving quietus to the claims of the Consortium of Banks against the loan of INR 6,203 crores advanced to the defunct Kingfisher Airlines Ltd."
Ongoing Legal Battle
Mallya, declared a fugitive economic offender in 2019, has consistently argued that the recovery of assets surpassing the original decreed debt should lead to the dismissal of criminal proceedings against him. In 2020, he approached the Bombay High Court with this plea, asserting that his dispute with lenders had been settled.
However, the consortium of lenders has opposed Mallya's efforts to quash his money laundering case. They maintain that civil recoveries do not absolve criminal liability under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has echoed this stance, stating that asset restoration under Section 8(8) of the PMLA is a statutory mechanism for restitution and does not determine the existence of the scheduled offense or money laundering, nor does it extinguish pending criminal proceedings by the ED and the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) related to alleged bank fraud and criminal conspiracy.