Corporate Malfeasance
Vijay Mallya / Kingfisher Group in India

Arrest warrant issued for liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya ... Vijay Mallya, who left the country owing more than $1bn, is wanting for unpaid loans made to his defunct airline.

Burgess COMMENTARY

Peter Burgess

Arrest warrant issued for liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya ... Vijay Mallya, who left the country owing more than $1bn, is wanting for unpaid loans made to his defunct airline.

Critics say the government has not done enough to tackle the issue of wealthy individuals such as Mallya, who obtain huge loans which they later fail to repay [Reuters]Critics say the government has not done enough to tackle the issue of wealthy individuals such as Mallya, who obtain huge loans which they later fail to repay [Reuters] An Indian court on Monday issued an arrest warrant for the embattled liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya, who left the country owing more than $1bn, an official said.

The 60-year-old baron, once dubbed the 'King of Good Times', left India on March 2 despite calls for his arrest and is believed to be in Britain.

'The court today issued a non-bailable warrant against Vijay Mallya at our request,' a senior official at the Enforcement Directorate, the government's financial crimes investigator, told AFP news agency on condition of anonymity.

The official said the directorate would now decide how to proceed against Mallya and may seek his extradition from Britain.

'We will deliberate before deciding our next step,' he said.

The move comes days after India suspended Mallya's passport at the request of the Enforcement Directorate, which had issued a series of summonses for the businessman to appear before it.

Kingfisher Airlines, now defunct, took loans from India's state-run IDBI bank that it failed to repay and led to the bank sustaining huge losses [Reuters]

Its investigation relates to loans which the state-run IDBI bank made to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines, despite allegedly knowing it was suffering financial troubles - leading the bank to sustain huge losses.

Mallya acquired his 'Good Times' nickname before the 2012 collapse of the airline, which left thousands of workers unemployed and millions of dollars in unpaid bills.

The directorate has reportedly accused him of siphoning off money from Kingfisher to buy property abroad - a claim the company denies.

In a statement issued before the warrant, Kingfisher Airlines' owner the UB Group said it was 'shocked at the allegation made by the Enforcement Department before the PMLA Court.

'Multiple investigations have been going on since July 2015 and this allegation has never been made,' it said late on Sunday.

'In order to explain foreign exchange remittances, all of which have been fully accounted for, we will provide full details in the next few days.'

The company said the Enforcement Directorate's basis for seeking a warrant against Mallya was 'erroneous and unjustified'.

Unpaid loans

Mallya is also being chased by a group of banks over $1.34bn in unpaid loans made to his defunct airline.

Earlier this month the banks rejected his offer to repay $600m and told the Supreme Court they wanted him to return to India so they could negotiate with him personally over the total owed.

His massive debt has become a symbol of Indian banks' vast volume of bad loans - those already in default or close to it - which are seen as a threat to financial stability in Asia's third largest economy.

Critics say the government has not done enough to tackle the issue of wealthy individuals such as Mallya, who obtain huge loans which they later fail to repay.

The businessman, who is also a member of India's parliament, has denied absconding and has criticised the media for what he has called a 'witch hunt'.

India and Britain signed an extradition treaty in 1993.

Source: Agencies

EWSINDIA19 MINUTES AGO India requests Vijay Mallya's extradition from Britain 'Formal request' made for extradition of Vijay Mallya to face trial for financial fraud and defaulting on loan payments.

Mallya made Kingfisher beer a global brand and started an airline [Reuters]

India has submitted an official extradition request to Britain to send back Vijay Mallya, a former liquor tycoon, to face trial after he fled the country owing more than $1bn.

The Indian foreign ministry said on Thursday that it lodged a formal request with the British high commission in the capital, New Delhi, after investigators demanded that Mallya be brought home to face charges of financial fraud and defaulting on loans.

'We have today handed over the request for extradition of Mr Vijay Vittal Mallya as received from the CBI [Central Bureau of Investigation] to the UK High Commission,' Vikas Swarup, ministry spokesman, said.

'We have requested the UK side to extradite him to face trial in India.'

Mallya has repeatedly refused to appear before courts and investigators in India since he secretly fled to Britain last March, after defaulting on loan payments to state-owned banks and allegedly misusing the funds.

READ MORE: Arrest warrant issued for liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya

His financial dealings are being investigated by the CBI and the federal Enforcement Directorate, a financial crimes agency.

Mallya, known for his extravagant lifestyle and who once branded himself the King of Good Times, was sacked late on Wednesday from the board of United Breweries, the firm through which he once controlled his business empire.

He made Kingfisher beer a global brand and ran a now-defunct airline with the same name, besides being the owner of a cricket side and a Formula One team.

More than half a dozen court warrants have already been issued against his name, and he owes banks at least $1bn.

In January an Indian court ordered a consortium of lenders to start the process of recovering the loans.