` 269 crore already paid to Vijay Mallya in February, says Diageo
IN VOLATILE SPIRITS Rest of agreed amount to be paid in next round in 2017
BENGALURU: British liquor giant Diageo Plc said on Wednesday it had already paid industrialist Vijay Mallya ` 269 crore of a ` 515crore settlement plan on a day the Centre revealed that the embattled tycoon had left India despite massive outstanding loans.
A spokesperson of Diageo, the world’s largest spirits maker, said in Mumbai the first tranche was paid to Mallya at the time of signing the agreement in February and that the next round of payments was due in 2017.
The revelation came a day after a consortium of 17 lenders led by State Bank of India moved the Supreme Court to stop Mallya from leaving India, worried over the fate of their loans worth thousands of crores given to the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) headed by the tycoon.
On Monday, the Enforcement Directorate registered a money laundering case against Mallya, while the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT) said he cannot touch the ` 515 crore, which Diageo agreed to pay Mallya as part of a sweetheart deal for exiting United Spirits Ltd (USL) .The ED case was based on a CBI probe into alleged “wilful default” by Mallya on a ` 900-crore loan in conspiracy with IDBI Bank representatives.
The USL board last year asked Mallya to resign after an internal investigation spearheaded by Diageo found he diverted funds to other companies under his control, charges that he denies. Banks owed money by KFA have demanded “first right” to the Diageo cash, arguing that they were left with unpaid debts worth ` 7,000 crore when KFA collapsed more than three years ago.