India has decided to send a special team to London to assist the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) in the oral hearing of the anti-extradition appeal of absconding fugitive liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya in the UK High Court after the court on Monday denied permission to appeal against the extradition order.
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Prior to this India has fought extradition cases at the level of the Magisterial Court but in a first, a special Indian team will be fighting the anti-extradition appeal of absconding fugitive liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya in the UK High Court.
With this India intends to narrow down all possible avenues of relief for the 63-year-old former Kingfisher Airlines boss who had filed the application seeking “leave to appeal” in the High Court on February 14 against his extradition order issued by the UK government, which was signed by UK Home Secretary Sajid Javid.
“The application for permission to appeal was refused by Mr. Justice William Davis on 05/04/2019,” said a spokesperson for the UK Judiciary adding that “the appellant (Mallya) has five business days to apply for an oral consideration.
Now that Mallya’s application has been rejected by Judge Davis, he has the option to submit for a “renewal” by April 12. The renewal process will lead to a brief oral hearing, which will include representations from the sides, Vijay Mallya and Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) on behalf of the Indian government. This process will determine whether the appeal can go for a full hearing.
Mallya is facing criminal charges of money laundering, fraud, and violation of the Foreign Exchange Management Act (FEMA). Mallya has been based in the UK since March 2016 and remains on bail on an extradition warrant executed by Scotland Yard in April 2017.
Meanwhile, Mallya now has the option to appeal to the Supreme Court which may take at least another six weeks.
Back in India, the investigative agencies have come down hard against the liquor baron for defaulting on the loans borrowed by him. The investigating agency ED had informally conveyed to Heineken NV, the part-owner of United Breweries (UB), that it intends to allow banks to auction Vijay Mallya’s shares in the company that the banks had attached once the court grants its approval to the agency for the same.