Didn't file clemency plea in Karnataka HC, ready to settle dues: Vijay Mallya
London, July 31 : Fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya, who is facing money laundering charges in multi-crore fraud case, on Tuesday said he has not applied for any clemency plea in India's Karnataka High Court and is ready to settle dues.
Mallya's assertion came after he came out of the Westminster court in London which he visited, along with his son Siddharth, to attend proceedings on his extradition trial.
"I have not applied for any clemency plea or a plea bargain in my unconditional offer to the Karnataka High Court. I am ready to settle my dues... There are no further requests at all," Mallya said interacting with the media outside the court.
The beleaguered businessman denied the money laundering charges against him, terming them "completely false".
"Allegations of money laundering and stealing money are completely false... At the end of the day, the courts will decide. The full amount is also to be determined.
"You can't have a situation where assets are attached based on complaints by the banks... And yet, the interest metre is rising everyday. It's an inequitable situation. So, let the judiciary decide what is right," Mallya said.
On the issue of extradition, he said: "As far as extradition case is concerned, I think you all have heard it. That is now for the next hearing on September 12. And I look forward to it."
He further said any litigation is exhausting, because the time spent on litigation can be used for more productive things. Asked why he suddenly decided to settled in London, Mallya said: "I have been trying to settle here since 2015."
The 62-year-old liquor baron, who fled the country on March 2, 2016, has been living in London ever since despite summons from Indian courts and law enforcement agencies to appear before them for trial in various related cases.
In a statement on June 26, Mallya had said that he had petitioned the Karnataka High Court to permit him and his holding firm United Breweries Holding Ltd (UBHL) to sell their assets under its supervision to repay creditors, including state-run banks.
"UBHL and myself have filed an application before the Karnataka High Court on June 22, setting out available assets of about Rs 13,900 crore," said Mallya from London in a statement released by his office in Karnataka.
Asserting that recovery of loans is a civil matter but it had been made a criminal matter in his case, Mallya had blamed the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Enforcement Directorate for criminalising it despite his intentions to settle the bank dues.
A consortium of 17 banks, led by the State Bank of India (SBI), gave Rs 5,500-crore loans to Mallya's now defunct Kingfisher Airlines for over a decade.
Claiming that the bulk of the dues were on account of interest, Mallya said owing to injunctions, attachments and refusal to grant permission to sell the assets, this had kept mounting.
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Bommai condemns Goa CM's statement on Mahadayi river project
Gadag (Karnataka), Jul 27 (PTI): BJP leader and former Karnataka Chief Minister Basavarj Bommai on Sunday condemned Goa Chief Minister Pramod Sawant's statement on the Mahadayi river project, as he also questioned the Congress' moral right to speak on the issue.
He claimed that whatever progress has been made on the Mahadayi issue, it happened under the BJP government.
Addressing the Goa Assembly last week, Sawant claimed that the Centre would not approve the Mahadayi project.
He also said the Goa government would file a contempt petition in the Supreme Court against Karnataka for carrying out activities aimed at diverting Mahadayi river water.
Bommai said, "There is no need to politicise the Mahadayi project issue. We are all united as this is an issue concerning the state. I condemn the statement made by the Chief Minister of Goa. There is no need to play such a big political game over one state's interests. He must act in accordance with the law, and hence I condemn his remarks."
Speaking to reporters here, he questioned the moral standing of Congress leaders in Karnataka on the Mahadayi issue.
"Congress leader Sonia Gandhi herself during the Goa polls said that not a single drop of Mahadayi water would be given to Karnataka. What moral right does Congress have to speak on this issue?" he asked.
Dubbing the Goa CM's statement an "insult to the people of Karnataka", CM Siddaramaiah had earlier hit out at the BJP stating "Why has the Centre not officially communicated its concerns? Is this how federalism works under the BJP? Are we being punished for not surrendering to the BJP?"
Bommai accused the Congress party of building a barrier to prevent Mahadayi water from flowing into the Malaprabha river, thereby obstructing the interlinking canal work initiated during the BJP regime and this was the only "contribution" Congress made to the Mahadayi project.
"Whatever progress has been made on the Mahadayi issue, it happened under the BJP government. The Congress, which constituted the tribunal, did not even provide it an office for four years. It was the BJP government that gave it an office. Though the tribunal gave a verdict, it was not notified. The NDA government under Prime Minister Narendra Modi issued the notification," he said.
It was the central NDA government that prepared the DPR for the Mahadayi project and got it approved. "It was also the BJP government that secured environmental clearance. The only thing the Congress did was to block the interlinking canal works started during the BJP tenure by constructing a barrier to prevent Mahadayi water from reaching the Malaprabha river," he said.
Goa has been opposing Karnataka's Kalasa-Banduri project in the Mahadayi river basin.
The Kalasa-Banduri project by the Karnataka government proposes diverting Mahadayi river water into the Malaprabha river to enhance the drinking water supply in parts of Dharwad, Belagavi, Bagalkote, and Gadag districts.
The Mahadayi river flows through Karnataka and Goa before joining the Arabian Sea. Known as the Mandovi in Goa, it is one of the state's two major rivers.
The diversion of Mahadayi water has long been a point of contention between Karnataka and Goa, with the latter claiming "it would severely impact the state's flora and fauna."
Speaking about the urea shortage in the state, Bommai said the government could have averted the crisis.
"Rainfall began early this year, and fertilizer should have been supplied where needed. Buffer stock should have been maintained, the management has not been proper," he said.
Noting that the state government has now submitted to the Centre for additional urea fertilizer supply, he said, "We (BJP) too will speak with the Union Minister for Agriculture and Fertilizers to get more supply. But more importantly, the fertilizer that is already arriving must be distributed properly by the Agriculture Department and the concerned ministers."
