The UK home office has confirmed the receipt of the Westminster Magistrates' Court ruling in favour of Vijay Mallya's extradition to India on Tuesday (11). Now the decision lies in the hands of UK home secretary Sajid Javid to officially order the extradition.
Chief magistrate Judge Emma Arbuthnot ruled on Monday (10) that the former liquor baron had a case to answer in the Indian courts on allegations of fraud and money laundering amounting to nearly Rs 90 billion.
Javid has 60 days to take that decision but the extradition process itself would take longer if entire appeals process is taken into account.
"If after considering the case, the Home Secretary thinks extradition should go ahead he has to order the extradition within two months of the date the matter was referred to him," said a spokesperson for the Crown Prosecution Service (CPS), which argued on behalf of the Indian government.
"Whatever that decision, the losing side has up to 14 days within which to approach the High Court and seek leave to appeal," the spokesperson added.
Mallya told journalists outside the courtroom after Monday's judgement that he will consider all his "options" and decide the move ahead.
"Mallya will be carefully considering the court's judgment and, therefore, it would not be appropriate to make any further comment at this time," said Anand Doobay, Partner at UK-based Boutique Law LLP, who has been Mallya's solicitor through the extradition process.
Monday's verdict marked a major turning point in the case, which dates back to the erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines defaulting on loans sought from a series of state-owned Indian banks.
The CPS argued that these loans were sought by Mallya with fraudulent intentions, who then misused the funds.
The business tycoon in his series of tweets earlier said that the huge sum of loans he took from the banks moved to maintain presently grounded Kingfisher Airlines amid rising air-fuel prices.
Last week, Mallya had asked various Indian banks to accept his offer to repay 100 per cent of the principle loan sum he is liable to repay them.
An aerial view of the British Steel Scunthorpe site on September 13, 2024. (Photo: Getty Images)
