The Supreme Court sentenced fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya on Monday to four months in jail for refusing to disclose his assets after defaulting on a loan of Rs. 9,000 crore since the collapse of his defunct Kingfisher Airlines.
Mallya, with interests ranging from aviation to liquor, is now in Britain and refused to appear before the court, despite several summons. The court found him guilty of contempt for not obeying its orders and imposed a fine of Rs.2,000.
The apex court said that having already held Mallya guilty of contempt, it must impose adequate sentences on him as he did not show any remorse. Lawyers for the lenders have said Mallya transferred $40 million to members of his family even though the bank loan remains unpaid.
The bench presided by Justice U U Lalit has also given Mallya and his family a four-week deadline to deposit $40 million, along with the accrued interest.
The lenders' led by the State Bank of India (SBI) had allegedly transferred US$ 40 million, received from British firm Diageo, to his children in "flagrant violation" of various judicial orders.
They claimed that he diverted the money to son Siddharth Mallya and daughters Leanna Mallya and Tanya Mallya in "flagrant violation" of the Karnataka High Court's orders.and urged the top court to direct Mallya to deposit the US$ 40 million and sought contempt action against him.
Mallya, who also co-owned the Formula One motor racing team Force India until 2019, has denied all wrongdoing and has previously said the case against him is politically motivated.
