Declare Mallya fugitive economic offender: ED

mumbai — The Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Friday moved a special court to declare the now defunct Kingfisher Airlines’ chief Vijay Mallya a “fugitive economic offender” and confiscate all his properties.

The financial probe agency said that it has filed an application before a court in Mumbai to declare Mallya, a fugitive economic offender under the newly-promulgated Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance. The agency also sought court orders for confiscating all the properties of Mallya worth Rs125 billion, which includes immovable properties as well as movable properties in form of shares.

Mallya is the first person under which action is proposed under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance. The agency officials said that the fugitive diamond jeweller Nirav Modi, who is wanted by the investigating agencies in India in the Rs135 billion Punjab National Bank (PNB) fraud case would be the second person to be declared as a fugitive economic offender under the new law.

The government has approved the Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance, 2018 on April 21 in a bid to bring back defaulters of huge bank loans who escape abroad, and also provide for attachment and confiscation of the properties of the economic offenders.

On ED’s request, Mallya’s passport was revoked in April 2016 and the agency so far has attached his properties worth Rs98.90 billion. —