The power of a particular government is not the only thing
that is challenged in a justice system. The resolve of the government is also
tested. And not only is this a case of the government’s prestige but is also a
matter of prestige of one of the most important banks in India; State Bank. What
is the basic problem behind the immediate extradition of Mr. Mallya? The only
reason that fits is that he is a billionaire. The UK is quite notoriously known
to harbor people of influence and power from being prosecuted. Even though the
UK has signed an extradition clause with India in 1992, the only person who was
extradited was a person who never even stood to fight the extradition in the
2002 Godhra Riots case. But the case here is not just about an individual but a
brand.
Vijay Mallya was the business tycoon of India who defined
in-flight luxury for its passengers. His Kingfisher Calender is famous world
over and is known to have given some of the most beautiful models in the Indian
Film Industry. The liquor baron- as he is known for United Breweries was quite
in the news in the time for the purchase of Tipu Sultan’s sword. He is also credited
with the possession of a very old vintage of Scotch Whiskey found on a sunken
ship. But apart from these the baron is now known to be a squanderer and a
cheat who took loans from many banks in India and defaulted on them repeatedly until
he fled India in March of 2016.
But the primary culprit behind all this is the government who
allowed a defaulter to flee India. Why did not the government put a ban on his
movement and revoke his passports. Vijay Mallya is a known figure and he did
not abscond, but he left India while everyone was watching and this makes it
more difficult to believe whether the government would be able to bring him
back or not. But this is not the first time when the UK has harbored people of
questionable integrity. The ousted General Pervez Musharaf who fled Pakistan is
also on the list of those people who are in the UK, who was responsible solely
for the 1999 Kargil War and the stalling of peace talks between India and
Pakistan.
It is safe to say that right or wrong is a matter of
perspective. But the matter of righteousness surpasses all boundaries of
nations and constitutions. What is more important is that the people you are
harboring are leaving on a certain impression for the world to see. It is not
necessary to be right all the time but to delay the delivery of justice is a
denial of justice itself. And this is not just a matter of the UK government but
also a matter of the government of India whose callous attitude and
underestimation facilitated the fleeing of one of the biggest defaulters in India's
banking history. But surely UK has a moral compass that points way to far from
India’s and that can be countered only by India’s resolve to bring Mr. Mallya
to justice.
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