In a major development, absconding businessman Vijay Mallya was arrested by the London Police in a money laundering case today. He was, however, released on bail immediately after the arrest.
Arrested in a second money laundering case filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED), Mallya was granted bail shortly after being produced before the Westminster Magistrate's court for a hearing.
This is similar to Mallya's arrest earlier this year by the Scotland Yard in London on India's request for his extradition on fraud charges. Then too, he was released on bail hours later.
Mallya's arrest in April was an outcome of the extradition request by India pursuant to orders from a Mumbai court in two different cases against the liquor baron and founder of the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
The extradition process in the UK requires its law enforcement authorities to effect an arrest to set the procedure in motion. Bail is then granted, as was done in Mallya’s case on Tuesday, the same day.
Acting on an extradition request sent by the CBI in connection with the IDBI Bank case and a service tax case, UK’s Scotland Yard arrested Mallya and produced him in a court which, as is the routine in financial crimes, released him on conditional bail on stiff conditions until May 17 when a senior district judge will start the extradition hearing
Mallya has been rejecting allegations by investigating agencies most of the Rs 6,000-crore loan borrowed from a State Bank of India-led consortium of lenders, terming them false and fabricated.
Mallya has been declared a proclaimed offender and there are multiple warrants pending against him in India in several cases including loan default and money laundering.
Mallya, whose now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines owes more than Rs 9,000 crore to various banks, had fled India on March 2, 2016.
