A day after photos of Vijay Mallya’s pre-birthday celebration in London surfaced, the Enforcement Directorate (ED) on Thursday announced that it has enabled the payout of Rs 312 crore to former Kingfisher Airlines employees to settle their long-pending dues. The amount has been transferred to the official liquidator, who will distribute it among former Kingfisher Airlines staff. The payout was approved by the Debt Recovery Tribunal (DRT), Chennai, which ordered the release of funds from the sale of shares earlier returned by the ED to State Bank of India (SBI).
Vijay Mallya declared fugitive economic offender
Vijay Mallya fled to London after the CBI registered a loan fraud case against him. The ED later filed a money laundering case against Mallya and Kingfisher Airlines Ltd. He was declared a fugitive economic offender in January 2019.
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Assets worth thousands of crores attached
The ED attached assets worth Rs 5,042 crore belonging to Mallya, Kingfisher Airlines, and related entities under the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA). In addition, properties worth Rs 1,695 crore were also attached. A special PMLA court later allowed these assets to be returned through the DRT to the SBI-led banking consortium.
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The sale of restituted assets fetched Rs 14,132 crore for the consortium banks, exceeding the original loan exposure.
ED coordinated payout of workers’ dues
A senior official said the ED worked closely with SBI and other stakeholders to ensure the settlement of long-pending employee dues. SBI approached the DRT, agreeing that workers’ dues should be given priority over secured creditor claims, which paved the way for the payout.