Vijay Mallya took to social media again, venting on Twitter that the government was determined to find him guilty without a fair trial and urged the Supreme Court to negotiate a settlement with his creditors.
Mallya fled to the United Kingdom in March 2016 after being wanted in courts by banks seeking to recover about 9000 crore rupees owed by the businessman’s now grounded airline, Kingfisher Airlines.
The former liquor baron also questioned why he was being denied a one-time settlement, an option he said public sector banks offer to other borrowers.
His tweets follow damning questions on Thursday from a Supreme Court bench which asked him about the truthfulness of his disclosure of assets and the transfer of $40 million to his children.
The court was hearing a plea by a group of lenders led by State Bank of India seeking to recover the $40 million payout Mallya received out of a $75 million package from UK-listed brewer Diageo Plc, following his resignation as chairman of United Spirits Ltd in February 2016.
"You answer us whether you have disclosed your assets truthfully? Did you violate the Karnataka High Court order by transferring $40 million," the bench asked senior advocate C S Vaidyanathan, representing Mallya, a Press Trust of India (PTI) article reported.
The consortium of lenders has alleged that Mallya hid facts and diverted money to his three children in violation of the Karnataka High Court’s order.
Attorney General Mukul Rohatgi, representing the banks, was reported to have argued that unless Mallya deposited the amount, he did not deserve to be heard.
Rohatgi also said that Mallya needed to appear personally in court, something the businessman has refused to do.
In response, Mallya tweeted that the Attorney General’s allegations reflected the government’s attitude towards him.
Mallya on several occasions has expressed doubts about receiving a fair trial in India. He told Reuters last month that he was safe in the UK.
Both Mallya and his counsel have maintained that he is being made a poster boy for default and that his case should not be treated differently.
His previously flamboyant lifestyle where he nicknamed himself ‘The King of Good Times’ to promote his beer brand Kingfisher and his outspokenness have muddied people’s perception of him.
The ruling NDA government which came to power promising to bring back black money stashed abroad and weed out corruption is unlikely to be lenient towards him and has sought his deportation.
