Mallya listed to appear before court under new law today

Beleaguered businessman VijayMallya is listed to appear before a special court in Mumbai on Monday as part of the first action initiated against an absconding accused under the newly enacted fugitive economic offenders law. Official sources said while it is certain that Mallya may not appear in person as he is contesting an Indian extradition case in London, it is expected his authorised legal representative may submit a reply to the court of special PMLA judge M S Azmi as part of his official response. The same court, on June 30, had issuednotice toMallya to appear before it on August 27 after the Enforcement Directorate (ED) charged the liquor baron under the new law as it enlarged its money laundering probe against him and others in a ~90 billion alleged bank fraud case. The central probe agency has also sought immediate confiscation of assets worth about ~125 million of Mallya as part of this latest action. The next course of legal action under the fugitive economic offender law depends entirely on the decision of the court, they said. They had indicated that if Mallya does not appear before the court, he runs a risk of being declared a fugitive economic offender, besides orders being issued for properties linked to him being confiscated. The same court had earlier issued non-bailable warrants against the businessman in two cases filed by the ED. Mallya, his now defunct venture Kingfisher Airlines and others availed loans from various banks and the outstanding amount, including interest, against him is ~99.90 billion.