SEBI Bars Vijay Mallya from Trading in India’s Securities Market
The SEBI prohibited Vijay Mallya from dealing in India's securities market or associating with any publicly traded company.
On Friday, Reuters reported that the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) barred fugitive liquor baron Vijay Mallya from trading in India’s securities market and associating with any listed firm for three years.
SEBI stated that Mallya’s “existing holding of securities along with the holding of units of mutual funds… shall remain frozen.”
Vijay Mallya Holdings and Business Interests:
According to exchange data, the 68-year-old businessman owns an 8.1% stake in United Breweries, the maker of Kingfisher beer, and serves as the company’s chairman. He also holds a 0.01% stake in United Spirits, the maker of Smirnoff vodka.
Legal Troubles and Fugitive Status:
Mallya is charged in a bank loan default case worth ₹9,000 crore involving his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines. In 2019, a special court declared him a Fugitive Economic Offender under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). Mallya fled India in March 2016 and currently resides in the United Kingdom.
On July 1, a special Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) court in Mumbai issued a non-bailable warrant against him in a ₹180 crore loan default case linked to the Indian Overseas Bank (IOB), as reported by PTI. The CBI, investigating the case, alleges that Mallya caused a wrongful loss of more than ₹180 crore to the government-run bank by “wilfully” defaulting on payments.
Allegations and Legal Proceedings:
The warrant is related to a cheating case registered by the CBI, which alleges the diversion of loans taken by the then-operational Kingfisher Airlines from IOB between 2007 and 2012. According to a court chargesheet issued by the CBI, these credit facilities were issued to the grounded private carrier under an agreement with the bank.
India’s Efforts for Extradition:
In May, India’s External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar emphasized that India has strongly presented its case for extradition fugitive economic offenders who have fled the country. He pointed out that most high-profile offenders have gone to the UK and that multiple rounds of legal proceedings have been in India’s favor.
Jaishankar urged the UK to take a “responsible view” of the matter, highlighting the reputational implications of being seen as a haven for tax evaders and defaulters.
