The Supreme Court yesterday asked the central government to file status report on the extradition of fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya within six weeks.
Solicitor General Tushar Mehta told a bench headed by Justice U U Lalit that some legal proceedings are still pending in the UK, which is delaying Mallya’s extradition.
The court adjourned the case to the third week of January.
Lalit noted that an order dated August 31, cites the Ministry of External Affairs report that certain legal proceedings by Mallya is pending in the UK.
The court had asked Mallya’s lawyer to respond on the nature of these proceedings. The bench noted that an intervention application has been filed by E C
Agrawala, lawyer for Mallya seeking discharge from the case.
Lalit rejected the application and said Agrawala would continue to be Mallya’s lawyer. “When will the Mallya’s extradition process be completed? Any time time frame,” Lalit asked Mehta.
Mehta replied there was no information from Indian high commission in London yet.
On October 6, the Ministry of Home Affairs (MHA) told the court that the UK Home Office had said there was a further legal issue which needed to be resolved before Mallya’s extradition took place and this issue was outside and apart from the extradition process having effect under the UK law.
The affidavit had said that Mallya’s surrender to India should, in principle, have been completed within 28 days after he lost the appeal against extradition.
On May 14, in a major setback, Mallya lost his application seeking leave to appeal in the UK Supreme Court, after the London High Court declined to entertain his appeal challenging the extradition order to India on charges of fraud and money laundering in connection with loans to his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
“The UK side emphasised that neither can they provide any more details nor intervene in the process. They have also indicated that through the designated channel, the UK Home Office has received a request to serve summons on Mallya for his hearing before the Supreme Court (India),” said the MHA.
The UK side said it has informed the Indian high commission that the issue was confidential and could not be disclosed.
The British Home Office also forwarded the Supreme Court order through Hertfordshire Police on September 17, for serving it to Mallya.
“It is also submitted that during the course of processing of request of service of notice upon Vijay Mallya, an interim report from the UK authorities has been received through the High Commission of India, London,” the affidavit said.