Vijay Mallya was one of the most flamboyant business tycoons and liquor barons in India. His larger-than-life image attracted a lot of attention and he had many fans even within Bollywood.
Vijay Mallya said in a statement today that he had sought approvals from a court in Karnataka to sell assets worth Rs 13,900 crore to repay creditors including banks. He also released a two-year-old letter to Prime Minister Narendra Modi and said he was "making every effort" to settle his dues but he had been made the "Poster Boy" of bank default and a lightning rod for public anger.
If agencies like the CBI or Enforcement Directorate objected to his appeal, he said, it would demonstrate "an agenda against me beyond recovery of dues".
"I respectfully say that I have made and continue to make every effort, in good faith to settle with the Public Sector Banks. If politically motivated extraneous factors interfere, there is nothing that I can do," said the 62-year-old.
According to him, the two agencies were "determined" to frame criminal charges against him. He also alleged that two past offers to settle were rejected by banks, the second time by a junior SBI (State Bank of India) officer.
"The surprising fact is that the ED has objected in court to my Group's applications for sale of assets in order to allow me to repay creditors," he said, questioning "whether the government wants me to repay the Public Sector Banks or not".
"I wrote letters to both the Prime Minister and the Finance Minister on 15th April 2016 and am making these letters public to put things in the right perspective. No response was received from either of them," Mr Mallya said.
The government, reacting to the statement, said Mr Mallya had "many years" to pay the 9,000 crore he owes.
Mr Mallya is wanted in India for defaulting on loans worth crores and also in a money-laundering case. He lives in a mansion near London and has been spotted at many events. Last year, he was arrested in London on an extradition warrant.
He said he was "tired of this relentless pursuit" by the government and its criminal agencies.
He also claimed that the bulk of his dues were on account of interest, which kept rising either because his properties were seized or because he was denied permission to sell assets.
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Who is right...mallya or indian_government???