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POLITICS






             The Congress also asked the govern-  Defence  minister  Nirmala   riod made it sick? Whose period had
             ment to reveal the details of Mallya’s   Sitharaman, meanwhile, termed as    favouritism and cronyism entering
             meetings  with  Finance  Minister    “motivated” the Congress’s demand   in to suggest to the central bank and
             Arun Jaitley.                  of Jaitley’s resignation over his meet-  written instructions given to banks to
               Rahul Gandhi, on his part, accused  ing with Mallya, saying it was a strat-  lend to this defaulter,” she asked.
             Jaitley of colluding with a “criminal”   egy to deflect attention from the UPA   Joining BJP’s counter-offensive,
             and not informing investigating agen-  government’s “cronyism and favorit-  law minister Ravi Shankar Prasad
             cies about liquor baron Vijay Mallya’s   ism”. Sitharaman was quoted as say-  asked whether Gandhi and Mallya
             plan to leave the country. Rahul also   ing that a brief conversation which   were  “working  in  tandem”  and
             questioned Prime Minister Narendra   Mallya had with Jaitley in a corridor   claimed the liquor baron had alleg-
             Modi’s role in Mallya’s flight to Britain  of Parliament is being “played up” and  edly benefitted from bank facilities
             in 2016. “Why did Jaitley allow Mallya  asserted that responses to the issue   during the UPA government. Railway
             to escape, or was it an order from the  have “reinforced” the fact it was not a  minister Piyush Goyal termed Mallya
                                                                            a ‘criminal’ and said his words could
                                            conversation of any merit.
             prime minister?” he asked. “This is a
 War of words erupts over   clear-cut case of collusion. There is   explained as to how Vijay Mallya    not be taken seriously, adding that
                                               Jaitley,  she  noted,  had  already
                                                                            banks were pressured by the UPA
             some deal between them. Finance
             Minister Jaitley must resign and this
                                            misused his privilege as Member of
                                                                            regime to sanction loans to Mallya
 Jaitley-Mallya meeting  should be investigated,” he said.  Parliament to speak to him. To a ques-  due to the Gandhi family’s “relations”
                                                                            with him.
               Senior Congress leader PL. Punia
             said that on March 1, 2016, when he
                                                                              Adding fodder to the Opposition’s
             was in the Central Hall of Parliament,   Congress leader PL    charges, former Attorney General
             he had seen Jaitley and Mallya talking                         Mukul Rohatgi told NDTV it was a
             “discreetly”. “On March 3, we heard   Puniya alleged he        “big coincidence” that Mallya left In-
 • Dues remain     Both BJP and Congress   ment letters. “I left because I had a   in Parliament and expressed to   from the media that he (Mallya) fled   had seen fugitive   dia on the same day a consortium of
 Jaitley, in a   scheduled meeting in Geneva, I met  them my desire to settle with the   the country on March 2. I have clearly   banks moved to recover their unpaid
 Facebook post,   are accusing each other   the finance minister before I left,   banks. I don’t believe I owe any   stated about this in each of my inter-  liquor baron Vijay   debt and it was possible that someone
 has denied a   of colluding with the   repeated my offer to settle with the   further details.” The 62-year-old   views with the media. There are CCTV   could have “tipped him off”.
 settlement had   banks... that’s the truth,” Mallya told   Mallya, who was famously known   cameras, we can all see that for proof.   Mallya and Finance   Retorting  to  the  claims,  BJP
 been reached   beleaguered aviation tycoon   reporters outside London’s West-  as ‘King of Good Times, also said   If I am wrong, I will quit politics,”    Minister Arun   spokesperson Sambit Patra flashed
 with Mallya   to help him leave the country   minster Magistrates’ Court, where   that he was not “tipped off” by any-  Punia  said.  He  said  the  meeting    a bunch of documents at a press
 before he had   without repaying  9,000   his extradition case is being heard.  one and he had “happened to meet”   between Jaitley and Mallya lasted for   Jaitley speak in   conference  and  told  reporters
 left India  Jaitley, in a Facebook post, denied  Jaitley in Parliament — a statement   15-20 minutes.  the central hall   that a series of letters between the
 crore of unpaid loans and   a settlement had been reached. Jait-  seen as a dilution from his earlier    Delhi  Chief  Minister  Arvind    Reserve Bank of India (RBI) and SBI
 several other liabilities,   ley said he had declined to hold an   “innocent statement” that he had   Kejriwal, in a tweet said, “Why did the   of Parliament in   show “how the previous dispensa-
 TEHELKA BUREAU reports  audience with Mallya by telling him  met the finance minister before   Finance Minister hide this informa-  March 2016  tion under Sonia Gandhi was biased,
             tion till now?” “PM Modi meets Nirav
                                                                            partial and kept all norms and regu-
 leaving India and had told him
 there was “no point talking to me”.
 A   rebuttal, Mallya appeared to tone   “I can confirm to you that nobody   meets Vijay Mallya before he flees   tion about Congress lawmaker PL   Kingfisher. Sometimes it seems the
             Modi before he flees the country. FM
 about his settlement offer for banks.
 Immediately after Jaitley’s sharp
                                                                            lations at bay to give a sweet deal to
 recent statement by fu-
 down the seriousness of his com-
                                                                            airline was not owned by Mallya, but
 gitive liquor baron Vi-
 tipped me off. There was no need to
             India. What transpired in these meet-
 run and the allegations are media
             ings? People want to know,” Kejriwal
                                            Punia’s claim that he had seen Jaitley
 ments, saying it was “not fair” to
                                                                            by the Gandhi family in proxy.”
 jay Mallya that he had
                                                                              The  boss  of  the  defunct  King -
             tweeted.
                                            sitting with Mallya in Parliament’s
 create a controversy over this is-
 created allegations.”
 met Finance Minister
               CPM General Secretary Sitaram
 Arun Jaitley to settle
 But  Mallya’s  “happened  to
                                            footage to corroborate it, Ms Sithara-
                                                                            on an extradition warrant since his
 and he only “happened to meet”
 matters with the banks before leav-  sue as it was not a “formal meeting”   meet” rectification or clarification   Yechury said, “It’s a fact that all of   Central Hall and there would be CCTV  fisher Airline, who has been on bail
 ing India has sparked fresh contro-  the finance minister. “I happened   could not stop Congress and other    us  had  known  earlier. Whatever   man shot back, asking if the footage   arrest in April 2017, is fighting extra-
 versy. The Bharatiya Janata Party   to meet Mr. Jaitley before in Parlia-  opposition  parties  from  target-  denials government may issue, it   would also have audio recording.   dition to India on charges of fraud
 (BJP) and Congress are in a war of   ment and told him that I am leaving  ing the government for “hiding”   confirms that all those who looted   “It already seems a very motivated    and  money  laundering  amount -
 words over the remark, with both   for London... I did not have formal   the information. Demanding the    public money by taking loans from   allegation,” she said of the Congress’   ing to around  9,000 crores. King-
 the parties accusing each other of   meetings scheduled with him,” he   details of Mallya’s meeting with the   banks and absconded, not one of   charge against Jaitley.  fisher  had  to  be  grounded  in
 colluding with the beleaguered avi-  said. Congress president, however,   finance minister, the Congress said,   them happened to leave the country   Hitting out at the Congress, she   October 2012 under a burden of over
 ation tycoon.  accused Jaitley and the government  “Mallya’s comment he met Jaitley   without knowledge of the govern-  said  letters  were  written  to  the    9,000 crore of unpaid loans and
 Mallya, while appearing for a   of lying on the issue.  confirms our assertion that govern-  ment. They (govt) have to own up to   Reserve Bank of India and State Bank  several other liabilities, including
 hearing of his extradition at Lon-  On whether he met any other   ment was fully complicit in flight of   the fact that they allowed this loot   of India during the UPA’s rule to help   defaults on employee salaries and
 don’s  Westminster  Magistrate   BJP leader before he left India for   people like him and others. The gov-  to happen and the fact that they are    Mallya. “They are in tour face. How    other payments.
 Court, added that the banks in India  London, Mallya said, “Over a period   ernment must explain how Vijay   allowing this loot to happen, more   favouritism naming that one com-
 had filed objections to his settle-  of time, I have met many colleagues  Mallya was allowed to leave India”.   are looting.”  pany has been made... Whose pe -  LETTERS@TEHELKA.COM
 TEHELKA / 30 SEPTEMBER 2018  10  WWW.TEHELKA.COM  TEHELKA / 30 SEPTEMBER 2018  11  WWW.TEHELKA.COM
 10-11 Maliya.indd   2  9/17/2018   7:24:16 PM  10-11 Maliya.indd   3                              9/17/2018   7:24:30 PM
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