Vijay Mallya hits back at critics calling him a fugitive, says he cannot leave UK
He also questioned his continued portrayal as fraudster, pointing to money recovered
Vijay Mallya has hit back at critics who label him a “bhagoda” (fugitive), saying he has been a permanent resident of the United Kingdom since 1992 and is currently “legally prohibited” from leaving the country.
The former Kingfisher Airlines owner and former F1 team Force India owner also accused the Indian government of treating him “grossly” unfairly.
“For all who say I am a bhagoda refusing to come to India, please be aware that I have been a permanent resident of the United Kingdom since 1992 and am currently legally prohibited from leaving this country,” Mallya said in a post on X.
Mallya left India in 2016 as authorities pursued cases related to loans taken by Kingfisher Airlines. He was subsequently declared a Fugitive Economic Offender under the Fugitive Economic Offenders Act, 2018.
In October 2025, the government told the Lok Sabha that 15 individuals had been declared Fugitive Economic Offenders. Mallya and diamond merchant Nirav Modi were among those named.
Mallya has also questioned his continued portrayal as a fraudster, pointing to the money recovered from his assets.
In another post on Tuesday, he referred to what he said was an Enforcement Directorate affidavit filed before the Bombay High Court. According to Mallya, the affidavit stated that Rs141 billion had been recovered from him in 2021.
Mallya had also claimed in August that banks and the government had recovered around Rs141 billion against a judgment debt of Rs62.03 billion.
He further alleged that the ED had released more than Rs3.5 billion from his attached funds to facilitate payments to former Kingfisher Airlines employees.
“Affidavit filed by the ED in the Hon’ble Bombay High Court. Para 7 is the decreed debt and Para 17 shows recovered Rs14,131.60 crore in 2021 !! 5 years on I am still referred to as a fraud who cheated the Banks,” he said.
Mallya also posted a table containing what he claimed was a statement of account of the recovery and alleged that he had been wrongly labelled a fugitive.
“To all who believe in fair and proper accounting justice please see the following table. Do I still deserve the way I am berated by the media and referred to as a fraudster at the very outset of a journalist’s script? Why not start asking when I will get my refund,” he said. “For all you naysayers, please independently verify and see that the ED released over Rs350 crores to pay Kingfisher employees from my attached funds. I could not pay because ED attached my assets/funds,” he added.
