Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya told the Bombay High Court that he is “unable to specify when I will return to India” from the UK, while responding to the Court’s query during the hearing of his plea challenging the FEO Act, 2018.
Fugitive businessman Vijay Mallya informed the Bombay High Court that he is unable to specify when he will return to India from the United Kingdom.
This remark was made in response to the Court’s inquiry regarding his return during the hearing of his petition contesting the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act of 2018 (FEO Act).
A Bench comprising Chief Justice Shree Chandrashekhar and Justice Gautam Ankhad emphasized that if Mallya wishes for the Court to consider his petition, he needs to return to India.
Mallya expressed that he cannot provide a definite date due to the revocation of his Indian passport by the government in 2016. He further mentioned that a British court has issued orders preventing him from leaving the country.
Senior Advocate Amit Desai said ,
“He is not permitted to leave or attempt to leave England and Wales or apply for or be in possession of any international travel document. In any event, the petitioner is unable to precisely state when he will return to India,”
Desai also argued that Mallya’s presence is unnecessary for the Court to hear his petition challenging the validity of the FEO Act.
Additionally, Mallya filed an appeal contesting the trial court’s declaration of him as a fugitive.
Desai contended,
“If I (Mallya) were to appear (in India), then all these proceedings are irrelevant. Because the section of the statute says that if you appear in the country, then all these orders will be set aside. That is the statute itself. Therefore, I am rendered remedy-less either by an appeal or in a writ if I am challenging the vires,”
The Bench directed the Central government to submit its response to this statement within a week and scheduled the next hearing for the second week of March 2026.
During the hearing, Solicitor General (SG) Tushar Mehta noted that the Central government had filed an affidavit addressing Mallya’s alleged dues and the recovery of most of it from his assets in India. He indicated that Mallya has been absconding since March 2, 2016, and was declared a fugitive offender by a competent court on January 5, 2019.
The SG raised concerns that, given the Indian government’s ongoing extradition proceedings, which are nearing completion, Mallya might misuse his affidavit and the pending court processes. However, the Court clarified that Mehta cannot utilize his petition or any related proceedings in the extradition case, as previously recorded in its orders.
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Earlier, The Bombay High Court expressed disapproval on Vijay Mallya’s attempts to seek judicial relief while remaining in the United Kingdom as a fugitive from Indian authorities.
The bench emphasized,
“You have to come back. If you cannot come back, then we cannot hear this plea,”
The court was reviewing Mallya’s petition against the FEO Act and the proceedings that declared him a fugitive economic offender.
This stance followed a December 23 order, which instructed Mallya to provide an affidavit detailing when he plans to return to India from the UK.
The court also made it clear that it would not entertain his challenge to the FEO Act unless he first submitted to its jurisdiction.
Case Title: Vijay Mallya v. Union of India & Ors.
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