After multiple warrants and being declared a proclaimed offender liquor baron Vijay Mallya has been declared an “absconder” by the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) court on Thursday.
On October 26, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) had moved an application before the special court seeking for him to be declared an absconder so that they can start attaching his properties as he did not appear before court after being declared a proclaimed offender.
Talking to The Hindu, the agency’s counsel Hiten Venegavkar said, “He has now been officially declared as an absconder and now all the properties belonging to him including all the shares and debentures he holds in companies are permitted to be attached.”
“After the court order copy is procured we can start attaching his properties even outside the country. This is a method to force him to come back to India,” said an esteemed source in ED.
On June 14 Mr Mallya, was declared a ‘proclaimed offender’ by the special court. He had ignored three summons by ED and non bailable warrants issued by the PMLA court. After such an order is issued, the person has to appear before the court within a stipulated period, but Mr Mallya did not do that, so the ED moved the court again for getting him declared as an “absconder”.
The agency had sought an order from the court under the Criminal Procedure Code’s section 82 (proclamation of absconding person) as several arrest warrants were pending against him and then the agency can proceed for attachment of all his properties.
ED wants Mr Mallya to join the investigation “in person” in connection with probe under the PMLA, and in cases related to a Rs 900—crore loan from IDBI Bank. It said it had exhausted other legal remedies like seeking Interpol arrest warrant and getting his passport revoked.
