A British court on Monday granted a bankruptcy order against Vijay Mallya, paving the way for a consortium of Indian lenders, led by the State Bank of India, to pursue a worldwide freezing order to seek repayment of amounts owed by the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
“As at 15.42 [UK time], I adjudicate Dr Mallya bankrupt,” Chief Insolvencies and Companies Court (ICC) Judge Michael Briggs said in his ruling, during a virtual hearing of the Chancery Division of the High Court here.
Indian banks, represented by the law firm TLT LLP and barrister Marcia Shekerdemian, had argued for the bankruptcy order to be granted in their favour.
The 65-year-old businessman, meanwhile, remains on bail in the UK while a “confidential” legal matter, believed to be related to an asylum application, is resolved in connection with the unrelated extradition proceedings.
The debt in question comprises principal and interest, plus compound interest at a rate of 11.5 per cent per annum from June 25, 2013.
Comments
Comments have to be in English, and in full sentences. They cannot be abusive or personal. Please abide by our community guidelines for posting your comments.
We have migrated to a new commenting platform. If you are already a registered user of TheHindu Businessline and logged in, you may continue to engage with our articles. If you do not have an account please register and login to post comments. Users can access their older comments by logging into their accounts on Vuukle.