Mallya case: DRT raps banks for casual approach

TIL Desk/Business/Bengaluru/ Terming GoAir and Indigo as “innocent” third parties, the Debt Recovery Tribunal has rapped banks for filing interim applications in a “casual and routine manner” to make them party to the Vijay Mallya case.

“The bankers have filed the applications in a casual and routine manner without all essential details that is required to be furnished in this case,” DRT Presiding Officer K Sreenivasan said in his order. The order was passed on October 18 on an amended plea by a consortium led by Oriental Bank of Commerce for recovery of payment.

On the same day, DRT had also directed European aircraft manufacturer Airbus to deposit with it Rs 192.51 crore towards pre-delivery payment made by banks for purchase of planes by the now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines controlled by Mallya.

The OBC, Corporation Bank and United Bank of India had made a pre-delivery payment of Rs 192.51 crore to Airbus on behalf of Kingfisher Airlines after both parties had signed a purchase agreement in 2005, but the planes were not delivered.