The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has told the Bombay High Court that recovery of bank debts does not absolve former liquor baron Vijay Mallya of money laundering charges.
In an affidavit filed before the court, the ED opposed Mallya’s 2020 petition seeking closure of criminal cases against him.
The agency said, properties worth 14,131.6 crore rupees had been handed over to the SBI-led consortium, but this does not lead to the withdrawal of the money laundering charges.
The ED said Mallya left India in March 2016 and failed to appear before investigators despite repeated summons. A non-bailable warrant was issued against him, and he was declared a proclaimed offender in November 2016.
Mallya is accused of laundering and misappropriating at least 3,500 crore rupees from 9,000 crore rupees in loans given to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
The ED had attached his properties in 2016, while a special court in 2019 allowed SBI and other lenders to use the attached movable assets, including United Breweries Holdings Ltd shares, for debt recovery.