Vijay Mallya to be extradited to India, orders UK Court In a major setback to Vijay Mallya, a UK court on Monday ordered his extradition to India, where he is wanted for alleged fraud and money laundering charges amounting to an estimated Rs 9,000 crores. Westminster Magistrates' Court Chief Magistrate Judge Emma Arbuthnot ruled that Mallya can be extradited to India to stand trial on the charges brought by the CBI and ED. The judge referred the extradition case to Secretary of State.

New Delhi | Mumbai: Vijay Mallya failed in his bid to stave off extradition from the UK to India to face charges of fraud and money laundering after the Westminster Magistrates’ Court rejected his plea.Chief magistrate Emma Arbuthnot said there was, prima facie, a case against Mallya for fraud, conspiracy and money laundering, describing him as “this glamorous, flashy, famous, bejeweled, bodyguarded, ostensibly billionaire playboy who charmed and cajoled these bankers into losing their common sense”.Mallya failed to convince the court that he would be made a victim of political intrigue. He had fought extradition on the grounds that Indian jails weren’t safe and that he was being made a scapegoat for India’s banks being stuck with massive bad loans given to companies. Mallya is on the hook for Rs 9,000 crore, according to Indian banks, on account of unpaid loans by Kingfisher Airlines , grounded since October 2012.The Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) welcomed the decision. “We hope to bring him back soon and conclude the case. CBI has its own inherent strengths. We worked hard on this case. We are strong on law and facts and we were confident while pursuing extradition process,” said a CBI spokesperson.Finance minister Arun Jaitley hailed the UK court order and also slammed the previous government. “An offender benefited during UPA’s tenure and the NDA has ensured that he is brought to book.”Mallya, who’s denied any wrongdoing, reiterated that he’s offered to pay the money owed. Mallya left India in March 2016. “Whatever the judgement, my legal team will… take proper steps thereafter. Yes, I have tweeted saying that I want to repay, that has nothing to do with this extradition issue. It’s a completely separate matter. I have filed a comprehensive settlement application before the Karnataka High Court, which is also being heard today,” he had said ahead of the UK court verdict.Mallya had tried to persuade the court that the prosecution was corrupt and politically led. “I found no evidence that the prosecution was corrupt or politically led,” the judge said. The London court ruled that there was a “prima facie case, that there is no evidence that the prosecution is politically motivated.” There were no grounds for abuse of process, it said.The court accepted assurances given by the Indian government and rejected Mallya’s “rather weak reservations”.It viewed a video of barrack number 12 of Arthur Road jail in Mumbai, which will house Mallya if he’s returned, and said it was an “accurate portrayal of the conditions which will apply”.Any suggestion that CBI courts are pliable was not borne out by evidence, the court held.“Courts are used to dealing with high-profile cases which are accompanied by often ill-advised political commentary,” the judge said. “I do not accept that the courts in India are there to do what the politicians tell them to do. As I have already said, the court will be under great scrutiny. I do not find any international consensus which would enable me to find that the judges in India are corrupt, the Judge has held.”Rejecting Mallya’s allegations against professional integrity of CBI special director Rakesh Asthana, the London court has also held that it has found “no evidence that Asthana acted corruptly”. “...There was no reliable or significant evidence produced by the defence that undermined that finding,” the court said.Sources told ET that Mallya would be housed in a high-security cell, details of which had been shared with the court.Out on bail in the UK since his arrest on the extradition warrant last year, Mallya has tweeted that he wants to clear his name. “Wherever I am physically, my appeal is ‘please take the money’. I want to stop the narrative that I stole money,” he tweeted last week.The issue of extradition of Indian nationals facing various charges from the UK, has been one of the biggest irritants in bilateral ties. India has asked the UK to extradite 28 people since 2002 but only one — Samirbhai Vinubhai Patel — has so far been sent home. India and the UK signed the extradition treaty in 1992 and it became effective the following year.The banks have declared Mallya a wilful defaulter and the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) has barred him from occupying board positions in any Indian companies. Last year June, the Enforcement Directorate had filed a chargesheet under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA), alleging that Mallya had diverted a Rs 900-crore loan to run Kingfisher Airlines.On December 5, Mallya had offered to repay the entire principal amount he owed. “Sad loss of the finest airline but still I offer to pay banks so no loss. Please take it,” he had tweeted.“We express our deep satisfaction at the judgement and note that justice has been delivered today. We will continue to work with the UK government for expeditious implementation of today’s court order and early extradition of Mallya to India,” a spokesperson of ministry of external affairs said.Some legal experts pointed out it may take a while before an extradition can take place. Mallya is not likely to be extradited to India for months, said London-based lawyer Sarosh Zaiwalla.“Should he choose to appeal to the Court of Appeal (he has the automatic right to do so) — it could take months for the case to be heard as it gets very clogged up, “ he said in an email. “This process could take up to five or six months. Should this also go against him, he could apply for the right to appeal to the Supreme Court, which would involve at least another six weeks and if he won the right to do so that could take more months, even up to a year. The Crown Prosecution Service (CPS) could apply for an expedited appeal process but it is not common for this to be granted. You would have to show the need of urgency.”If Mallya decides not to appeal, the CPS will send the magistrate’s decision to home secretary Sajid Javid for further action.“In the last 26 years only one person has been extradited from the UK, and so the court’s decision in case of Mallya is historic,” said Zulfiquar Memon, managing partner, MZM Legal. “Although this is not the end of road for Mallya as he has a remedy by approaching the UK High Court within the next 14 days and the final decision on whether he would actually be extradited could take a few more months.”