Mallya denied permission to appeal in bankruptcy case
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Liquor tycoon Vijay Mallya was denied permission on Wednesday to appeal in opposition to a U.K. High Court order refusing to dismiss bankruptcy proceedings introduced by a consortium of Indian banks led by the State Bank of India (SBI), in its pursuit of money owed associated to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
The 65-year-old businessman, who stays on bail in the UK, had filed a renewed software to appeal in opposition to U.K. courtroom orders final 12 months permitting for an adjournment of bankruptcy proceedings till the debt challenge earlier than the Supreme Court in India was determined upon.
His counsel, Philip Marshall, argued that the banks’ bankruptcy petition must be dismissed somewhat than simply adjourned, because the debt in query was disputed and being deliberated upon in the Indian courts.
“While this was a new point [before the appellate court], I do not accept it as a reasonable ground for appeal as the matter can be dealt with during proceedings that are still continuing,” mentioned Justice Colin Birss, throughout a distant listening to of the Chancery Appeals Division of the High Court in London.
Mr. Mallya’s barrister additionally raised the difficulty of “abuse of process” by the banks in their alleged non-disclosure of securities held in India and the existence of third-party safety in the type of belongings associated to United Breweries Holdings.
The decide reiterated that he had dismissed each these as enough grounds of appeal in a ruling he handed down “on paper” in December final 12 months. “There is no prospect of success of an appeal based on this ground, although this does not preclude reliance on it [third-party security] later,” the decide dominated.
The listening to kinds a part of a collection being heard by the High Court because the SBI-led consortium of 13 Indian banks initiated the proceedings in opposition to Mr. Mallya in December 2018 as a part of their efforts to recoup round £1.145 billion in unpaid loans.
Meanwhile, the separate proceedings associated to the previous Kingfisher Airlines chief being extradited to India to face costs of fraud and cash laundering stay held up by a “confidential” authorized matter.
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