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Finance Minister Arun Jaitley on Monday expressed hope that the investigative agencies will use the option of extradition for bringing back former Kingfisher Airlines chief Vijay Mallya to India.
Noting that there is a difference between the process of deportation and extradition, he said, “Typically, the UK has never been helpful in deportation. Once someone has entered with legitimate travel documents … (they believe) he can’t be deported,” he said at an event organised by the Indian Women’s Press Corps (IWPC).
He said the extradition process will now have to be used after filing a charge sheet.
The now defunct Kingfisher Airlines has dues of ₹9,432 crore and is considered a wilful defaulter after it failed to pay back loans to a consortium of 13 banks. It is being investigated by the Enforcement Directorate, the Central Bureau of Investigation and the Serious Fraud Investigation Office (SFIO).
Mallya left India in March on a diplomatic passport and is in the UK.
On GST
Meanwhile, the Finance Minister said all States, including those led by the Congress party, are in favour of the Goods and Services Tax (GST).
“Every regional party, barring the AIADMK, which has mixed voices, has a strong interest in the passage of GST,” he stressed.
He said all the UPA partners, including the DMK and the NCP, are making strong noises in its support and even Chief Ministers of Congress-ruled States have supported it.
“It is extremely difficult for the Congress party to take a dissenting view …when it comes to the crunch, it should support it,” he said, expressing hope that the pending reform moves forward.
On RBI
Jaitley also maintained that the relationship between the Finance Ministry and the Reserve Bank of India is “institutional and mature”. Brushing aside reports of differences of opinion, he said, “It is a very mature relationship and we at the highest level in the two institutions have discussions and each others views are considered.”
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