New Delhi:- The Enforcement Directorate has told Interpol that it is “obligatory” on its part to issue Red Corner Notice (RCN) against liquor baron Vijay Mallya in connection with an alleged Rs 900 crore bank loan fraud.
In a detailed communication to Interpol, the agency has said that it has followed all legal procedures for seeking RCN against him. It has also said that orders were issued by the courts after hearing the counsels of ED and Mallya, officials said.
The ED has told the global police body that issuance of RCN against Mallya is “obligatory on the part of Interpol as all due legal processes have been followed by Indian probe agencies to seek such a warrant against an accused to make him join probe and ensure justice to the victim (banks),” they said.
It has also informed Interpol that the agency is seeking a proclaimed offender status against Mallya from a competent court. A decision in this regard is expected from a Mumbai court tomorrow.
RCN is issued “to seek the location and arrest of wanted persons with a view to extradition or similar lawful action” in a criminal case probe.
Once RCN is issued, Interpol seeks to arrest the person concerned in any part of the world and notifies that country to take his or her custody for further action at their end.
Earlier, Interpol had asked ED to provide certain inputs on the legal processes undertaken by the agency in the case before it can notify RCN against Mallya.
The RCN was sought sometime back by the investigating officer of the case to make the beleaguered businessman join probe in the Rs 900 crore alleged loan fraud of the IDBI bank, which is also being probed by CBI.
Yesterday, the ED’s Mumbai office had attached assets worth Rs 1,411 crore of Mallya and one of his company.
Mallya had left India on March 2 using his diplomatic passport and is believed to be in the UK.
Mallya and others are being probed by the ED in the Rs 900 crore IDBI loan fraud case in which it registered a criminal case under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) early this year.
Britain had recently made it clear that Mallya cannot be deported and asked India to seek his extradition instead and the agency is mulling invoking the Mutual Legal Assistance Treaty (MLAT) existing between the two countries to get this job done.
The British government said it acknowledges “the seriousness of allegations” against Mallya and was “keen to assist” the Indian government in this case.
PTI
