Indian banks back in UK court over Vijay Mallya's non-payment of debt
London: A consortium of Indian public sector banks led by State Bank of India (SBI) are back in the UK high court to seek a bankruptcy order against liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya over the alleged unpaid debt of around 1.145 billion pounds.
Judge Michael Briggs is presiding over a hearing in the insolvency division of the court in London this week in relation to a bankruptcy petition filed by the banks back in 2018 in their attempt to recoup unpaid debt accrued by the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
A previous UK High Court ruling had refused to overturn a worldwide order freezing Mallya's assets and upheld an Indian court's ruling that the consortium of 13 Indian banks were entitled to recover funds amounting to nearly 1.145 billion pounds.
The banks then launched efforts to recover dues as part of the freezing order, with the bankruptcy petition aimed at seizing UK-based Mallya's assets to recover the dues.
Besides SBI, the 13 Indian banks include Bank of Baroda, Corporation bank, Federal Bank Ltd, IDBI Bank, Indian Overseas Bank, Jammu & Kashmir Bank, Punjab & Sind Bank, Punjab National Bank, State Bank of Mysore, UCO Bank, United Bank of India and JM Financial Asset Reconstruction Co. Pvt Ltd.
They have secured follow-on High Court orders to recover some of the funds owed to them as a result of Kingfisher Airlines' unpaid loans.
In July, the banks had won a High Court battle to access documents they were after to establish the true ownership of assets they believed were linked with the embattled liquor tycoon.
Frankly, the answer needs to be known as to which assets are that of Mr Mallya, both for the purpose of the worldwide freezing order and enforcement of the judgment, Justice Robin Knowles had ruled.
Two superyachts, a game reserve in South Africa, numerous undeclared high-value and vintage cars, valuable paintings and a piano previously owned by famous British singer-songwriter Elton John were among some of the assets on their target list.
The true ownership of a plush home overlooking Regent's Park in the heart of London also remains in contention.
Mallya's legal team has argued that the petition for bankruptcy in the UK should be dismissed because the banks are pursuing the same debt through the Indian courts.
The lawyers have also sought a stay on proceedings until Mallya's appeal against his extradition order, scheduled in the Royal Courts of Justice in London, is heard in February next year.
Meanwhile, Mallya remains on bail pending the appeal hearing in the extradition proceedings brought by India in relation to charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to an alleged Rs 9,000 crores.
He had been arrested on an extradition warrant back in April 2017 and has been fighting his extradition in the UK courts since then.
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Hamas accepts cease-fire proposal for Gaza, but Israel's stance still uncertain
Jerusalem, May 6: Hamas announced Monday it has accepted an Egyptian-Qatari cease-fire proposal, but there was no immediate word from Israel, leaving it uncertain whether a deal had been sealed to bring a halt to the seven-month-long war in Gaza.
It was the first glimmer of hope that a deal might avert further bloodshed. Hours earlier, Israel ordered some 100,000 Palestinians to begin evacuating the southern Gaza town of Rafah, signalling that an attack was imminent. The United States and other key allies of Israel oppose an offensive on Rafah, where around 1.4 million Palestinians, more than half of Gaza's population, are sheltering.
An official familiar with Israeli thinking said Israeli officials were examining the proposal, but the plan approved by Hamas was not the framework Israel proposed.
An American official also said the US was still waiting to learn more about the Hamas position and whether it reflected an agreement to what had already been signed off on by Israel and international negotiators or something else. Both officials spoke on condition of anonymity as a stance was still being formulated.
Details of the proposal have not been released. Touring the region last week, US Secretary of State Antony Blinken had pressed Hamas to take the deal, and Egyptian officials said it called for a cease-fire of multiple stages starting with a limited hostage release and some Israeli troop pullbacks from Gaza. The two sides would also negotiate a “permanent calm” that would lead to a full hostage release and greater Israeli withdrawal, they said.
