The Enforcement Directorate (ED) has restituted assets worth Rs 14,130 crore to consortium of banks in the money laundering cases pertaining to fugitive economic offender Vijay Mallya, a report by the Financial Action Task Force (FATF) said.
Additional Revenue Secretary Vivek Aggarwal said that the government is hopeful, and is negotiating with the government of United Kingdom to extradite the former liquor baron.
A report by FATF stated that Mallya has yet to face trial in India. “His extradition from the UK was approved in 2019 but he is yet to be extradited to India, due to a number of ongoing court processes in the UK,” it said. So far, in total ED has restored assets around Rs 16,400 crore to lenders in high profile cases, including that of Nirav Modi.
Over the five-year period between 2018 and 2023, the total value of proceeds related to money laundering (ML) investigations attached (seized) by ED was Rs 8,341.3 crore.
The value of the average provisional attachment orders (PAO) is Rs 76.24 crore, although some of the very large cases are likely to have pushed up the average, such as Mallya’s, said the FATF.
The routine manner in which ED attaches assets at an early stage of investigations is a significant strength of the system, as it substantially reduces the risk of asset flight and also acts as a deterrent. Multiple PAOs may be issued during the course of an investigation as assets are identified and traced, particularly for complex cases involving misuse of corporate vehicles and multiple jurisdictions, said the FATF.
From: financialexpress
Financial News
