India, UK discuss Vijay Mallya’s extradition, suggest sources

Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who is on a five-day foreign tour and is currently in the United Kingdom, discussed the extradition of fugitive tycoon Vijay Mallya with his British counterpart Theresa May, said sources.

Though there was no official statement on this matter, a spokesperson of 10 Downing Street said that the cooperation discussions between both the countries representatives went on till legal matters.

Mallya, who is wanted in India in a money laundering case and an alleged bank fraud case, had skipped the country after defaulting loans, and was said to be residing in London.

Also Read| PM in London LIVE: Modi addresses Indian diaspora at Central Hall, Westminster

The Modi government was continuously targeted upon by the Opposition in the Vijay Mallya’s exit. Mallya was arrested twice last year in London but was released on bail. The Indian government is now awaiting through a long process of extradition, and it is expected that a final judgement may come within weeks.

The Indian government is represented by the Crown Prosecution service in the London court.

India had submitted a 2,000-page dossier in the court as part of the evidence against Mallya. One of the leading arguments that Mallya had put forth in the UK hearings is the poor condition of prisons in India.