Disgruntled with the delay in the extradition trial of Vijay Mallya, the Supreme Court slammed the Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) on Tuesday, demanding it file a reply on the same by Friday, 12 December, reports ANI.
It also indicated that should the MEA fail to do so, it would be forced to call in the MEA secretary, the ANI report added.
ANI reports that the Supreme Court also lashed out at the Centre, asking why its officers are not cooperating with the court in the extradition case.
How can the court’s orders not be taken seriously?Supreme Court to the Center, as reported by ANI
Vijay Mallya, who has been living in a mansion in UK on ‘exile’ since news of his fraud reached the public, appeared in Westminster Magistrates' Court in London yesterday for the resumption of his extradition trial, which will determine his return to India to face charges over his erstwhile Kingfisher Airlines, reports PTI.
Meanwhile, Mallya’s defence has been preparing a statement which says that the different banks accusing Mallya of fraud had refused a settlement offer of about Rs 6,000 crore earlier this year, a report by Firstpost adds.
Mallya is also facing parallel litigation in the Queen's Bench Division of the commercial court in England's High Court of Justice, due to the request of a group of Indian banks, led by the State Bank of India, that his assets be frozen, reports Economic Times.
The same report states that Mallya’s lawyers have been granted an extension to respond to this case, considering the extradition trial regarding the allegations charged against him is reportedly ongoing.
(With inputs from ANI, Economic Times and Firstpost)
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