Bombay HC seeks closure in Vijay Mallya-bank dispute, issues notice to ED
The Bombay High Court on Wednesday orally observed that the long-pending commercial dispute between fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya and a consortium of banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI) should be concluded. The court issued a notice to the Enforcement Directorate (ED) seeking an update on the case and the status of asset attachments.
The matter was heard by a single-judge bench of Justice Milind Jadhav, who directed the ED's Deputy Director to furnish the present status of investigations against Mr. Mallya and details of the attachments made so far. The court was hearing a 2020 application filed by Mr. Mallya challenging a special Mumbai court order that permitted the banks to utilise certain assets belonging to him, which had been previously seized by the ED.
Advocate Amit Desai, representing Mr. Mallya, told the court that the application was filed in 2020 when the ED-attached assets were valued at around ₹15,000 crore. He referred to a statement made by the Finance Minister in Parliament, submitting that no statement has been made regarding what has been seized and what remains pending, even though the data is in the public domain. Mr. Desai added that all civil liabilities are over and that it is unfortunate that public sector banks are keeping the matter pending.
Mr. Desai also cited an RBI audit, which he said concludes that the dispute stems from a complete airlines business failure. In response, Justice Jadhav remarked that the Indian government must file an affidavit stating that everything is concluded, as a closure is required for such commercial litigation.
The bench issued notice to the ED, recording that substantial developments have taken place since the application was filed. The court said it will decide the further course of action after hearing the ED Deputy Director.
Justice Jadhav expressed the opinion that the commercial dispute between the banks and Mr. Mallya must be brought to an end, noting that a decade has passed. He observed that relations between countries were getting affected and that the idea is to move on.
The matter has been placed for further hearing after four weeks.
Mr. Mallya, who has been living in the United Kingdom since 2016, faces allegations of defrauding banks and has been declared a fugitive economic offender. The consortium of banks, led by SBI, has been seeking to recover dues of over ₹9,000 crore from him.
