Biocon Chief Defends Vijay Mallya, Says ‘Don’t Vilify Failure’
Vijay Mallya lashes out at media trial following a fresh SEBI order against him.
Beleaguered chairman of United Breweries Ltd. and the founder and chairman of now defunct Kingfisher Airlines Ltd. Vijay Mallya has found support from Biocon chairperson Kiran Mazumdar Shaw.
In a series of replies to various tweets, Shaw made the case that Mallya should not be targeted because of a ‘business failure’ and must instead be given a fair trial. In reply to a tweet by Shekhar Gupta who called Mallya’s escape to the United Kingdom a “question mark on the Modi government claims of fighting corruption” and a “national embarrassment” Shaw pointed out the need to differentiate between a business failure and a fraud. Failure to do so could destroy the risk appetite of banks and entrepreneurs, she cautioned.
Shaw said there is still no established proof that the former Kingfisher promoter having diverted funds meant for the airline for “personal pleasures”.
Lashing out at a tweet which termed Shaw’s support for Mallya a case of “crony supporting crony”, the Biocon chief argued that a rational case cannot be termed as ‘crony.’
Banks Unwilling To Settle?
The Biocon chairperson argued that Mallya’s case should also be brought under the new Bankruptcy Law. The current situation is a lose-lose one for banks as well as Mallya, she added, as the consortium has in the past rejected more than one settlement offers made by Mallya.
She also pointed to the hefty sums loaned by banks to public sector companies like Air India and asked why only private sector companies are singled out for such treatment.
In the past too, the Biocon chief had stressed the need to accord Mallya a fair opportunity to settle loan default issues with banks, and maintained that the media trial against him would not help matters, wire agency PTI reported.
Mallya Hits Back
Meanwhile, Mallya himself lashed out at the nature of the media coverage, saying he’s been pronounced guilty without a proper trial.
A recent order from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI) barred Vijay Mallya and Ashok Capoor, the former president and managing director of United Spirits Ltd. (USL), from holding any board position or the role of a key managerial person (KMP) in a listed company. He was also barred from accessing the securities market.
