Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya has been asked to present himself in front of a special anti-money laundering court on 27 August under the newly enacted Fugitive Economic Offenders Ordinance, an official familiar with the development said.
According to sources, if Mallya does not appear before the designated court within the given time, he will be declared “fugitive” and the Enforcement Directorate will have the option to confiscate his assets worth around Rs 12,500 crore.
Mallya, who fled the country on 2 March 2016, has been living in London since then and despite multiple summons from Indian courts and law enforcement agencies to appear before them for trial in various cases, has chosen to ignore them. Earlier this week, through correspondence released online, Mallya claimed that he had honestly tried to repay bank loans since 2016 and vehemently denied that his offer to settle his dues was linked to the newly passed ordinance.