The Indian government has revoked embattled former airline boss Vijay Mallya’s passport, after he failed to appear before investigators over a loan probe, the foreign ministry said yesterday.
Mallya, a part-owner of the Force India Formula One team who used to run a liquor empire and Kingfisher Airlines, left India on March 2 despite calls for his arrest and is believed to be in Britain.
The 60-year-old businessman, once dubbed the “King of Good Times,” had his diplomatic passport suspended earlier this month after he failed to appear before India’s financial crimes agency in connection with the loan case.
Photo: AP
Indian Ministry of External Affairs spokesman Vikas Swarup said the decision to pull the passport was taken after Mallya’s unsatisfactory reply to three notices served by the Indian Enforcement Directorate agency.
“After having considered replies by Vijay Mallya, [the ministry] revoked his passport under Passports Act,” Swarup said.
The directorate is looking into the finances of Kingfisher Airlines, which ceased operating in 2012 leaving millions of US dollars in unpaid bills, including of salaries of workers.
An Indian court last week issued an arrest warrant for Mallya after he failed to appear for questioning at the directorate, which is seeking his extradition from Britain.
The directorate’s investigation relates to loans which the state-run IDBI bank made to Kingfisher Airlines, despite allegedly knowing it was suffering financial troubles — leading the bank to sustain huge losses.
Mallya inherited United Breweries Group from his father at the age of 28 and turned it into one of the world’s largest spirit makers, hosting extravagant yacht parties with Bollywood stars and politicians along the way.
His profile rose further when he acquired a stake in the Force India Formula One team and ownership of the Royal Challengers Bangalore cricket team.
The directorate has reportedly accused him of siphoning off money from Kingfisher to buy property abroad — a claim the company denies.
Separately, he is being chased by a group of mostly state-run banks over US$1.34 billion in unpaid loans made to the airline.
Earlier this month the banks rejected his offer to repay US$600 million and told the Indian 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 the Indian parliament, has denied absconding and has criticized the media for what he has called a “witch hunt.”
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