A very sensational and interesting news is coming out about Vijay Mallya, one of the biggest and most famous financial fugitives in the country's banking history, which has once again refreshed the memories of those financial scams and legal battles that shook the country's banking system. Vijay Mallya, the founder of Kingfisher Airlines and fugitive businessman who had fled the country to London under the burden of debt, had recently tried to get his old money or refund from Indian banks, but the country's largest public lender State Bank of India (SBI) has retaliated and given him a big blow which he would hardly have imagined. The SBI-led consortium has flatly rejected Vijay Mallya's demand for any relief or refund and has directly handed over the outstanding bill of more than Rs 8,752 crore to him. After this shocking development, the discussion has once again intensified in the financial corridors and legal circles whether the Government of India and the banks are going to tighten their legal grip further to extort every penny from the country. This case is not only a business dispute, but it has become a huge symbol of accountability towards crores of honest taxpayers of the country and the banking system, where it is no longer easy for any big defaulters to run away from the long arm of the law.
Vijay Mallya, who is taking refuge in London, has been claiming for a long time that he has suffered financial injustice in the charges leveled against him and the process of attachment of his properties by the banks, and in this regard he had tried to get his money back or refund through some legal and formal means. But Indian banks, especially the State Bank of India, have made it clear that unless the loans worth thousands of crores of rupees taken by them and the huge interest accrued on them are fully repaid, there will be no question of any kind of refund or relief. By serving an official notice to Vijay Mallya to pay the dues of Rs 8,752 crore, the group of banks led by SBI has given a clear message that it is impossible to escape the attention of Indian courts and financial institutions. This step of the banks is proof that the recovery process against the defaulters who are causing damage to the country's financial system will not be stopped at any cost and every move of such economic criminals hiding abroad will be responded to with full strictness of the law.
This entire controversy is reminiscent of the time when Vijay Mallya's Kingfisher Airlines was flying in the sky and Mallya, considered a symbol of luxurious lifestyle, was called the 'King of Good Times'. But due to mismanagement, excessive expenditure and commercial difficulties in the aviation sector, the airlines sank into huge losses and within no time the company turned into one of the biggest financial scams in the country. Mallya had taken huge loans from Indian banks in the form of a consortium, which he was unable to repay and in 2016 he quietly left India and fled to Britain. Ever since he left the country, many major banks including SBI, PNB and IDBI have been fighting a legal battle against him so that the country's public money can be recovered. From time to time, banks have also tried to recover some amount by attaching their luxurious properties, villas and personal contacts in Bangalore and other places, but the figure of the outstanding amount is so huge that including the interest, this amount has reached several thousand crores of rupees. Vijay Mallya's recent demand for refund and SBI's response to it with a bill of Rs 8,752 crore is the latest chapter in this long and never-ending legal and financial tug of war.
This case of Vijay Mallya is not only a dispute between a bank and a businessman, but it is also a test of all the policies of the Government of India under which continuous efforts are being made to bring economic criminals back to the country and confiscate their assets. The Enforcement Directorate (ED), the Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) and the Finance Ministry are working together to ensure that the dues of such people are recovered by legally selling their properties under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA). Long legal processes have been going on in the British courts regarding Mallya's extradition, and Indian agencies are continuously trying to bring him to India and bring him to justice. When such fugitive businessmen come up with issues like refunds, it becomes a matter for both the public and the government to think about how people misuse the financial systems to take the country's money abroad. But this latest step of SBI proves that Indian banks and financial institutions are fully prepared to take every possible strict step within the legal ambit to recover their money.
This incident of SBI handing over a bill of Rs 8,752 crore to Vijay Mallya is a big message for the entire banking system of the country and other defaulters. It also gives a strong warning to all those people who dream of living a peaceful life in foreign countries by withdrawing thousands of crores of rupees from the country's banks. The Indian banking system has now become more alert, strong and aggressive than ever before, using legal options with full force to recover NPAs. In the coming days, it will be very interesting to see what legal response Vijay Mallya gives to this huge bill and SBI's stand, and whether the British courts or the Indian judiciary take any decisive step in this direction. The common citizens and taxpayers of the country are watching this entire process with great hope that the day will come when even the last penny will be recovered from these fugitives who misused the country's money and the victory of the Indian justice system will be completely assured.