A Delhi trial court on Saturday issued a non-bailable warrant against Vijay Mallya in connection with a 2012 case of a bounced cheque filed by Delhi International Airport. The court asked the former liquor baron to appear for the hearing on November 4, reported PTI. Metropolitan Magistrate Sumeet Anand also asked the Ministry of External Affairs to send the non-bailable warrant to Mallya, who has been in United Kingdom since a series of money laundering cases surfaced against him.
Anand acknowledged that coercive steps were needed to ensure that Mallya comes before the court. He said, “Despite repeated orders, Vijay Mallya has not appeared in the court. It is inevitable for state machinery to intervene.”
Delhi International Airport, which runs the Capital’s Indira Gandhi International Airport, had filed a complaint against Mallya, alleging that a cheque of Rs 1 crore that the Kingfisher Airlines had issued was dishonoured. The complainant said the bank returned the cheque, which was issued on February 22, 2012, after a month saying “funds insufficient”.
In June 2012, DIAL had filed four cases against Mallya in cheque bouncing issue. Kingfisher Airlines had issued three cheques worth Rs. 7.5 crore for the services used by them at the IGI airport. Mallya’s counsel, however, had told the Delhi High Court that the former liquor baron was not involved in the day-to-day affairs of the airlines and thus cannot be held liable in the cases filed, reported ANI. However, the court refused to quash the summon.
Last month, a metropolitan court in Mumbai had issued a non-bailable warrant against Mallya in a similar case filed by the Airports Authority of India. The beleaguered businessman is also accused of defaulting in a number of cases and owes around Rs 9,000 crore to 17 Indian banks.
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