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Liquor baron Vijay Mallya granted bail after brief arrest in London
Scotland Yard said the liquor baron and former Kingfisher boss had been arrested on behalf of India on accusations of fraud.

Liquor baron and former Kingfisher boss Vijay Mallya was granted bail shortly being arrested by Scotland Yard in London on Tuesday, a little over a year since he left India after defaulting on loans worth more than Rs 8,000 crore.

Mallya tweeted soon after being granted bail.
Usual Indian media hype. Extradition hearing in Court started today as expected.

— Vijay Mallya (@TheVijayMallya) April 18, 2017
Earlier, British authorities announced the high-profile arrest.

"Officers from the Metropolitan Police’s Extradition Unit have this morning arrested a man on an extraction warrant," read a Scotland Yard statement. "Vijay Mallya, 61, was arrested on behalf of the Indian authorities in relation to accusations of fraud."

He was then presented before the Westminster Magistrates’ Court, where he was granted bail.

Extradition warrant arrest on behalf of Indian authorities https://t.co/cXET0Q13q5 pic.twitter.com/s90THSa0nD

— Metropolitan Police (@metpoliceuk) April 18, 2017
The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) from India will now put in a request to extradite Mallya to India.

He was declared a wilful defaulter back home last year and on February 8, India had handed a formal extradition request to the British government to bring back Mallya.

While handing over the request, India had asserted that it has a "legitimate" case against Mallya and maintained that if an extradition request is honoured, it would show British
"sensitivity towards our concerns".

Sources told CNN-News18 that Finance Minister Arun Jaitley personally made an appeal regarding Mallya to British Prime Minister Theresa May during his visit to Britain in February.

The request for extradition was recently certified by the UK. Sources told CNBC-TV18 that Mallya’s lawyers had been anticipating the arrest and had been preparing for it.

Sources in New Delhi said the UK government had two options before it — deportation and extradition. But since Mallya legally entered the UK with a valid passport, deportation was ruled out.

Speaking to News18, BJP MP Subramaniam Swamy said that Narendra Modi means business and that it’s time for Mallya to go home.

However, according to lawyer HP Ranina, an arrest does not necessarily mean a stronger case for extradition.

While deportation for Mallya is easier, extradition could take time, senior advocate Mahesh Jethmalani told News18.

Ranina further said we need to wait and see what is covered in the arrest warrant and Mallya will challenge his arrest in the local London court and a legal battle will ensue.

Mallya is wanted in India for defaulting on loans worth Rs 9,000 crore related to Kingfisher Airlines (KFA) that was suspended in 2012. He had left the country last year on March 3.

The Central Bureau of Investigation has been investigating a case against Mallya and the companies he controlled over allegations of money laundering since early last year and had secured a non-bailable warrant against the absconding businessman in a case related to money laundering and wilful default of loans.

Despite numerous summons from the Indian government, Mallya failed to appear in court. In September last year, Mallya had wanted to come to India but was incapacitated as his passport had been revoked.

However, the Enforcement Directorate in October had said that Mallya had no intentions of coming back to India and that his passport was revoked due to his conduct.

Criminal Lawyer Satish Maneshinde said that Mallya has made a case that he has been politically hounded and is a victim of a media trial. The courts in UK will examine, if Mallya’s offence is extraditable or not.

In February, Karnataka High Court had ordered winding up of
United Breweries Holdings Limited to facilitate recovery of debt owned by Kingfisher Airlines.

Kingfisher Airlines was promoted by United Breweries.

Vijay Mallya arrested in London; likely to be extradited to India
Liquor baron Vijay Mallya has been arrested in London,

Liquor baron Vijay Mallya has been arrested in London by the local police, according to CNN-News18.

Mallya will now be presented before the Westminster Magistration court. The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) from India will then put in a request to extradite Mallya to India.

India, on February 8, had handed a formal extradition request to the British government to bring back Mallya.

He has been declared a wilful defaulter back home and India’s request for his extradition was recently certified by the UK. Sources told CNBC-TV18 that Mallya’s lawyers had been anticipating the arrest and had been preparing for it.

However, according to lawyer HP Ranina, an arrest does not necessarily mean a stronger case for extradition.

Ranina further said we need to wait and see what is covered in the arrest warrant and Mallya will challenge this in the local London court, a legal battle post which extradition will occur.

Mallya is wanted in India for defaulting on loans worth Rs 9,000 crore related to Kingfisher Airlines that was suspended in 2012.

He had left the country last year on March 3 and was reportedly in UK since then.

Despite numerous summons from the Indian government, Mallya failed to appear in court. In September last year, Mallya had wanted to come to India but was incapacitated as his passport had been revoked.

However, the enforcement directorate in October had said that Mallya had no intentions of coming back to India and that his passport was revoked due to his conduct.

Criminal Lawyer Satish Maneshinde said that Mallya has made a case that he has been politically hounded and is a victim of a media trial. The courts in UK will examine, if Mallya’s offence is extraditable or not.