Mallya's plea for stay on proceedings under FEO Act dismissed

The Bombay High Court on Thursday dismissed Vijay Mallya's appeal for a stay on proceedings under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act (FEOA) on the pretext that the Appellate Tribunal for Foreign Exchange had ordered status quo in respect of attachments in the Prevention of Money Laundering Act (PMLA) case filed against him while adjudicating the State Bank of India's (SBI) plea.

An application was filed by the Enforcement Directorate (ED) before the Special Court for the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, Session Court, Mumbai for declaring Mallya a Fugitive Economic Offender and ordered for the confiscation of his properties.

The Counsel for Vijay Mallya, during the hearing before the FEOA Special Court, requested for maintaining status quo of the case till the matter before the Appellate Tribunal of PMLA in New Delhi is heard and disposed off. However, the FEOA Special Court rejected the plea of the Counsel for Mallya.

This order of the FEOA Special Court was challenged today before the High Court of Bombay by way of filing a Criminal Appeal at the last moment.

During the hearing, the Counsel for Mallya tried to convince the court to grant a stay on the order of the FEOA Special Court as per the order of the Ld. Appellate Tribunal. However, the Court declined the same stating that the Fugitive Court's Order was an Interlocutory Order and not a final one as no right or issue has been decided. Further, on the passing of a final rider, the appellant has got every right to file an appeal before the appropriate judicial forum as envisaged under the provisions of the F.E.O.A., 2018.

SBI had earlier filed an intervening application before the Appellate Tribunal for PMLA cases in New Delhi against the confirmation order of provisional attachments made by the ED in Kingfisher/Vijay Mallya case by the PMLA Adjudicating Authority on grounds that the banks are the sufferers and attached properties shall be restituted to the banks against the outstanding loans.

The Appellate Tribunal had ordered for maintaining status quo of the attached properties by way of direction to Mallya and the ED in the interim.