Agencies / London
India’s Fugitive Embattled liquor baron Vijay Mallya Wednesday claimed that he met the finance minister Arun Jaitely before leaving the country.
“I left because I had a scheduled meeting in Geneva. I met the finance minister before I left, repeated my offer to settle with the banks. That is the truth,” said Mallya, who arrived to appear before the Westminster Magistrates’ Court in a case regarding his extradition to India to face trial on fraud and money laundering charges, in response to a query by journalist that was he “tipped off” to leave the country.
Jaitley, who was the finance minister in 2016 when Mallya left India, denied the liquor baron’s claim.
Mallya said the media should question the banks why they are not supporting him in his efforts to repay.
“I have said before that I am a political football. There is nothing that I can do about it. My conscience is clear and (I) put almost Rs 15,000 crore worth of assets on the table of the Karnataka High Court,” he said.
Vijay Mallya met FM @arunjaitley several times before escaping the country to discuss a settlement plan, inspite of this the BJP govt. allowed him to flee with thousands of crores debt. Do we need anymore proof that this govt. is in the pocket of crony capitalists.
— Congress (@INCIndia) September 12, 2018
Not only the finance minister, the entire BJP must come clean on its relations with Vijay Mallya.
— Yashwant Sinha (@YashwantSinha) September 12, 2018
“I am certainly a scapegoat, I feel like a scapegoat. Both political parties don’t like me,” he said, while having a cigarette during lunch break in hearings for his ongoing extradition case at Westminster Magistrates’ Court in London.
He sarcastically described the video of Barrack 12 at Mumbai’s Arthur Road Jail, which has been prepared for him, as “very impressive”. “I have no comment, you are hearing everything in court,” he added on further questions by reporters.
Mallya has been on bail on an extradition warrant since his arrest in April last year and is fighting extradition to India on charges of fraud and money laundering amounting to around Rs 9,000 crore.
At the previous hearing in July, Judge Emma Arbuthnot had asked the Indian authorities to submit a “step by step video” of Barrack 12 of Arthur Road Jail for “the avoidance of doubt” over the availability of natural light in the cell where the businessman is expected to be detained pre-trial, during trial and in the event he is convicted by the Indian courts.
The extradition trial, which opened at the London court on December 4 last year, is aimed at laying out a prima facie case of fraud against Mallya. It also seeks to prove there are no “bars to extradition” and that the tycoon is assured a fair trial in India over his now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines’ alleged default of over Rs 9,000 crore in loans from a consortium of Indian banks.
Jaitley refutes Vijay Mallya’s claim that he met him before leaving India
PM Modi meets Neerav Modi before he flees the country. FM meets Vijay Mallya before he flees India. What transpired in these meetings? People want to know.
— Arvind Kejriwal (@ArvindKejriwal) September 12, 2018