A UK court on Monday declared fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya bankrupt. With this order, Indian banks will now be able to easily confiscate Mallya’s assets around the world. A consortium of Indian banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI) filed a petition against Mallya in the British Court.
Chief Insolvency and Companies Court (ICC) Judge Michael Briggs conducted a virtual hearing in the Chancery Division of the High Court. He said in the judgment- ‘I declare Dr. Mallya insolvent.’ Mallya has no chance of appealing against the decision of the London High Court.
Law firm TLT LLP and barrister Marcia Shekerdamian appeared on behalf of the Indian banks during the hearing. Mallya, 65, will meanwhile remain on bail in the UK until legal proceedings related to his extradition are completed.
During the hearing, Mallya’s lawyer Philip Marshall sought a stay of the order till the legal challenges continue in the Indian courts. However, the court turned down the demand of his lawyers. The judge categorically said that there is no evidence that Mallya will return the entire money to the banks in due course.
Mallya’s lawyers also submitted an application to the court seeking permission to appeal against the bankruptcy order, which was turned down by Judge Briggs.
65-year-old Mallya’s airline company Kingfisher has not been able to fly since October 20, 2012 due to the financial crisis. Vijay Mallya has been declared a fugitive economic offender in January 2019 for non-payment of loans and allegedly defrauding banks. Mallya left India on 2 March 2016.
13 banks led by SBI had filed a petition against Mallya in a London court. These include Bank of Baroda, Corporation Bank, Federal Bank Ltd., IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu and Kashmir Bank, Punjab and Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction. Company Private Limited as well as an additional creditor were the main petitioners in this case.