A joint team comprising officials from both Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI), and the Enforcement Directorate (ED) have reportedly reached London in order to speed up the process of extraditing liquor baron Vijay Mallya.
Reports suggest that Rakesh Asthana, the deputy director of CBI, is leading the team and that they would be holding talks with the British prosecutors with respect to Mallya's extradition from the United Kingdom.
Agencies are working on a two-fold strategy to counter any possible move by Mallya seeking a political plea to halt his possible extradition both in London and in Delhi.Reported India Today
The report also mentioned that home secretaries Rajiv Mehrishi and Amber Rudd, who are scheduled to hold talks next week, will also be discussing the Mallya case.
Vijay Mallya was arrested by Scotland Yard on 18 April, and was let off on bail on the same day after just a few hours of detention. He was arrested in connection with the extradition request that India filed in February 2017, as per the Extradition Treaty between India and the UK.
The UK’s extradition process involves a number of steps, including the accused being arrested and produced before court, following which the final decision will be taken by the secretary of state.
Mallya's now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines owes Rs 9,000 crore to 17 state-owned and private banks. Vijay Mallya fled India on 2 March 2016 after cases were put against him by both the CBI and the ED.
(With inputs from India Today, Economic Times)
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