Vijay Mallya — a name that was once synonymous with a life of luxury and indulgence. From being seen with bikini models at Kingfisher calendar launch events to appearing alongside Bollywood actresses like Shilpa Shetty and Katrina Kaif, his flamboyance knew no bounds. At times, he made headlines for purchasing a lavish mansion in the scenic city of Sausalito, and at other times, for acquiring the IPL team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
But the man who was elected twice to the Rajya Sabha as an independent MP, saw his empire collapse so dramatically that he fled from India.
Podcast Drama: Vijay Mallya Playing the Victim Card
After the death of his father, Vijay Mallya became the Chairman of United Breweries in 1983 at the age of 28. Now, nine years after fleeing the country, he is once again in the spotlight — this time because of his podcast with Raj Shamani. Following this podcast, which runs for over 4 hours and 18 minutes, some people have begun to feel sympathetic towards him — perhaps exactly what the podcast aimed to achieve. Armed with documents, Mallya made a strong attempt to portray himself as a victim, insisting that he committed no fraud and that he always intended to repay the loans.
The way Vijay Mallya has dragged Arun Jaitley’s name into this podcast has given a particular group an opportunity to target the Modi government. Mallya claims that before fleeing the country from Delhi, he had informed Arun Jaitley. He clarifies that he neither went to Jaitley’s office nor had any formal meeting with him — he simply told him in passing that he was leaving. At that time, Arun Jaitley was the Finance Minister of India, and he is no longer alive today to respond to these allegations.
This isn’t the first time Mallya has mentioned Arun Jaitley. Back in September 2018, he had made a similar claim outside a London court in front of a group of journalists — that he had met Jaitley with a settlement offer. However, Arun Jaitley had strongly denied this, stating that it was merely a brief exchange lasting only a few minutes, where Mallya had said he was preparing a settlement offer.
Since both of them were members of the Rajya Sabha at that time, a casual whisper in the corridors of Parliament by one MP to another can hardly be called a “meeting.”
Jaitley had clearly said back then that he never gave Mallya an appointment after 2014. Mallya took advantage of his position as a Rajya Sabha MP and approached him while walking, making a reference to a settlement offer. According to Jaitley, he was well aware of Mallya’s ‘bluff tactics’ and clearly told him there was no point discussing it with him, and that he should instead take the offer to the banks. So essentially, what was just a brief verbal exchange is something Mallya has repeatedly portrayed as a meeting, even though Jaitley never entertained further conversation with him.
The Financial Maze: Lies, Loans, and Lavish Lifestyles
Vijay Mallya is also claiming that the loan he had taken has already been repaid. This is like a thief saying that he looted a house 10 years ago, so now no case should be filed against him just because he has returned all the looted stuff. The truth is, Mallya still owes Indian banks over ₹7,000 crore. According to the banks, the total outstanding amount was ₹17,781 crore, out of which ₹10,815 crore has been recovered so far. This means ₹6,997 crore is still pending.
On the other hand, Mallya claims his loan was only ₹6,200 crore, and that he has already paid ₹14,000 crore in return.
But any common person knows that loans come with interest. What many might not know is that an additional interest is also charged along with earlier interest, which is called penal interest. People like Vijay Mallya, who neither repay on time nor cooperate with the banks, are liable to pay this penal interest as well. That’s why there’s a gap between the figures presented by the banks and Mallya’s own claims.
After orders from the PMLA court, investigating agencies have already auctioned off several seized properties of Mallya, including the Kingfisher villa in Goa, because there was no other way to recover the money.
Mallya is also facing proceedings in the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT). A total of 17 banks — including SBI, PNB, IDBI, and UCO Bank — had loaned money to him. He is not just accused of loan default, but also of fraud and money laundering.
The fact is, the case is no longer just about Vijay Mallya alone. The CBI arrested Yogesh Aggarwal, the former Chairman and Managing Director of IDBI Bank, in connection with the Mallya case. Former bank executive BK Batra was also arrested. In January 2017, along with them, seven others were arrested, including Kingfisher’s Chief Financial Officer A. Raghunathan and three other officials. The allegation was that these individuals showed bias in favor of Vijay Mallya — in simple terms, they helped him unfairly.
Despite Kingfisher Airlines having weak financials, they still approved a ₹1,000 crore loan. The name of Buddhadeb Dasgupta, former General Manager at IDBI Bank, also appeared in the CBI’s supplementary chargesheet.
The CBI has also filed a money laundering chargesheet in the case. So, this is not just about defaulting on loans, it is also a case of money laundering and wilful default — meaning, intentionally choosing not to repay loans. The reason for the arrest of the bank and company officials is that they all conspired together. Mallya is labeled a wilful defaulter because when Kingfisher Airlines was collapsing, he showed no intention of repaying loans or paying salaries to employees.
From Fugitive to Web Series Star?
Now, Vijay Mallya is busy polishing his image, but that may work for a web series, not in real life.
In 2008 and 2015-16, when Kingfisher employees were crying out for their unpaid salaries, Mallya was busy buying properties abroad. In those two years, he bought properties worth ₹330 crore in England and France. He also founded the Force India Formula One Limited (F1F1) team. Investigations later revealed that ₹241 crore was transferred from Kingfisher’s bank accounts to this F1 team’s account, which was located at HSBC Bank in London.
The Ladywalk property in London, where Mallya lives, was also bought for ₹80 crore.
Now let’s address his recent claims — that he’s not a fraud. Here’s more on his actions, because sometimes facts get buried under flowery words due to their complexity.
In 2016, Mallya received $40 million (₹342 crore today) from Diageo PLC. As per the personal guarantee agreement he had signed with the banks, he was not allowed to alienate (transfer) this money, as it was considered an asset. Yet, Mallya transferred the funds to his son and other family members, clearly violating the 2010 agreement with banks.
When such a person claims he is not a fraud, it comes as a surprise. According to documents from Swiss banks in 2017, Vijay Mallya’s wealth was $1 billion (₹8,500 crore as per today’s value). An amount of $13.33 million was also transferred to an account belonging to Siddharth Mallya. Vijay Mallya purchased an aircraft for $60 million through Kingfisher Airlines. Don’t make the mistake of thinking this aircraft was bought to boost the revenue of a sinking company. It was, in fact, acquired as a tool to support Vijay Mallya’s luxurious lifestyle. He used it for personal trips with his friends. Operating this aircraft cost ₹100 crore. That money came from loans.
To put it simply, if you break the law deliberately, you’re a criminal—because intent matters. If Vijay Mallya truly believed he was innocent, he wouldn’t have fled the country using a diplomatic passport as a Rajya Sabha MP. Instead, he would have stayed, fought his case, and presented these documents before the courts and investigative agencies—not to some podcaster.
Even in his company UB, Vijay Mallya wasn’t short on shady practices. He sold 8.41% of UB shares without informing the Board of Directors or the stock exchange. As per rules, anyone buying over 5% of shares is obligated to notify the stock exchange.
UB was used as a guarantee for Kingfisher Airlines’ loans, but it was later found that the company’s valuation was lower than the loan amount. Since August 2012, Kingfisher employees had stopped receiving salaries. Yet, in February 2014, Mallya spent ₹28.70 crore on purchasing IPL players. His team RCB bought Yuvraj Singh for ₹14 crore. That season, RCB spent over ₹58 crore on buying and retaining players—while ₹350 crore in unpaid salaries to employees remained due.
While employees were protesting and some even went on indefinite hunger strikes, Mallya was busy partying in Goa. Dues were pending not just to banks and employees, but also to oil companies and aircraft lessors. Employees’ PF and tax (371 crore rupees) amounts were also deducted but never deposited with the government.
Congress-Era Shenanigans: The System Enabled the Scam
What’s more alarming is that all this happened during Congress-led governments. Mallya didn’t just name Arun Jaitley—he also mentioned Pranab Mukherjee, saying that during the 2008 global recession, when he approached then-Finance Minister Mukherjee, he was advised not to cut down Kingfisher operations. Today, Pranab Mukherjee too is no longer alive to respond to these claims.
Even if the loans are repaid, Vijay Mallya will still be charged under IPC Sections 406, 409, and 420, as he is accused of using forged documents. In one such document submitted for a loan, he falsely inflated the valuation of Kingfisher Airlines to $500 million. In July 2022, Vijay Mallya was sentenced to four months in jail by the Supreme Court in a contempt of court case. Let’s say he doesn’t trust the government—but the judiciary too?
| Myth | Fact |
|---|---|
| 1. Vijay Mallya is not a fraud; he intended to repay all loans. | Mallya diverted ₹3,500 crore from loans to unrelated purposes, including a Formula 1 team and personal luxuries. He also transferred $40 million to his family against bank guarantees. |
| 2. He repaid all his loans and owes nothing to Indian banks. | Banks claim ₹17,781 crore was owed; only ₹10,815 crore has been recovered. Over ₹6,997 crore is still pending. |
| 3. The total loan was only ₹6,200 crore. | Mallya excludes interest and penal interest. With all dues, the official liability was nearly ₹17,781 crore. |
| 4. He met Arun Jaitley to settle loans. | Arun Jaitley confirmed it was a brief unsolicited corridor encounter, not a meeting. No official discussion or offer was accepted. |
| 5. He’s being politically targeted by the Modi government. | Most of the loans and defaults occurred during Congress-led UPA governments. The FEO Act came under Modi Govt to fix these loopholes. |
| 6. He used loans to save Kingfisher Airlines. | Funds were diverted for personal gains—₹330 crore spent on foreign properties during employee salary defaults; ₹100 crore spent operating a personal jet. |
| 7. He is being unfairly accused despite returning to the spotlight to clarify facts. | He fled India using a diplomatic passport. If he was innocent, he could’ve fought his case in Indian courts instead of appearing on podcasts. |
| 8. The case is related to Vijay Mallya only. | Several bank executives were arrested for biased approvals. The CBI and ED have filed chargesheets citing collusion between Mallya and bank officials. |
| 9. He never evaded taxes or misused funds. | He evaded ₹100 crore in service tax, collected from passengers but not deposited. A non-bailable warrant was issued by a Mumbai court. |
| 10. Selling properties covered the dues. | Multiple assets, including Kingfisher Villa, were auctioned. But this only partially repaid the loans; dues remain and criminal charges persist. |
Nearly 2,000 employees saw their livelihoods destroyed due to the collapse of Kingfisher Airlines. Because of cases like his, the Modi government had to bring in the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act in 2018. In 2020, a UK court also ordered his extradition, but Vijay Mallya has since exploited various legal loopholes to delay it. At this point, it’s no longer just about recovery—it’s a matter of criminal conspiracy, fraud, and money laundering. The Enforcement Directorate (ED) is prosecuting him for money laundering. The agency found that ₹3,500 crore from the loans was diverted elsewhere—meaning the money was taken under one pretext but spent for entirely different purposes.
In addition, he also faces charges of evading ₹100 crore in service tax. Complaints filed between 2012–2015 revealed that although this money was collected from passengers, it was never deposited with the government. A Mumbai court even issued a non-bailable warrant against him for this. The SFIO (Serious Fraud Investigation Office) also issued a notice in 2016 based on 17 complaints. The allegation: loans were taken through 17 different companies to finance Kingfisher Airlines.
Yes, it is true that criminals often become so cunning that they exploit the loopholes and weaknesses in the system. If bank officials were also involved, Vijay Mallya certainly took full advantage of it. The flaws in the banking system were clearly exposed. That’s why the FEO Act was introduced in 2018. Under this act, a fugitive’s assets—both domestic and overseas—can be seized even before the charges are proven. RBI and the Finance Ministry introduced several reforms. But just because the system had flaws does not mean the person exploiting it gets to play the victim card and claim innocence.
